International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Shares Down 1.1% – What’s Next?

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) shares fell 1.1% on Friday . The company traded as low as $251.89 and last traded at $255.41. 1,501,805 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 65% from the average session volume of 4,321,302 shares. The stock had previously closed at $258.27.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on IBM shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Monday. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Bank of America increased their price target on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on International Business Machines from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $225.53.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $225.96 and a 200 day moving average of $213.86. The stock has a market cap of $236.78 billion, a PE ratio of 39.82, a P/E/G ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.74.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 40.37%. Equities analysts predict that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is presently 104.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other International Business Machines news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.20, for a total value of $774,720.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 25,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,463,928. This represents a 12.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Business Machines

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. raised its position in International Business Machines by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 80,491 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $17,694,000 after purchasing an additional 5,581 shares during the period. GAM Holding AG acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the fourth quarter valued at $1,246,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in International Business Machines by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,809 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,717,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 8,560 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,882,000 after acquiring an additional 999 shares during the period. Finally, Truist Financial Corp grew its position in International Business Machines by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 811,062 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $178,296,000 after acquiring an additional 49,591 shares in the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.