International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Trading Up 1.1% – Time to Buy?

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) shares shot up 1.1% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $224.44 and last traded at $224.41. 1,186,216 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 72% from the average session volume of 4,239,474 shares. The stock had previously closed at $221.93.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on International Business Machines from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. DZ Bank lowered shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $215.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on International Business Machines from $205.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on International Business Machines from $208.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $208.94.

International Business Machines Trading Up 0.2 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16. The company has a market cap of $207.94 billion, a PE ratio of 32.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.17 and a beta of 0.73. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $221.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $205.12.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $14.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.08 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 10.22% and a return on equity of 40.52%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.20 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th were issued a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.97%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 97.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of International Business Machines stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.20, for a total value of $774,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 25,390 shares in the company, valued at $5,463,928. The trade was a 12.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.07% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Business Machines

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of IBM. Lantz Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 11,935 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,064,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,979,000. iA Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 7.6% in the 2nd quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,738 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $646,000 after buying an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the 2nd quarter valued at $4,525,000. Finally, Integral Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in International Business Machines during the 2nd quarter worth $257,000. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About International Business Machines

International Business Machines Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated solutions and services worldwide. The company operates through Software, Consulting, Infrastructure, and Financing segments. The Software segment offers a hybrid cloud and AI platforms that allows clients to realize their digital and AI transformations across the applications, data, and environments in which they operate.