International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Trading Down 1.3% – Here’s What Happened

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)’s stock price dropped 1.3% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $246.01 and last traded at $246.35. Approximately 791,158 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 3,899,496 shares. The stock had previously closed at $249.63.

Analyst Ratings Changes

IBM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $231.44.

International Business Machines Stock Up 1.0 %

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $244.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $228.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $230.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.71, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.74.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 38.99%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 104.21%.

Insider Activity at International Business Machines

In related news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total value of $6,715,644.43. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. This represents a 37.10 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Business Machines

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in IBM. Pettinga Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $221,000. United Bank increased its stake in International Business Machines by 53.3% in the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 5,628 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,244,000 after buying an additional 1,956 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in International Business Machines by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 6,205 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,372,000 after buying an additional 686 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in International Business Machines by 17.0% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 26,017 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $5,752,000 after buying an additional 3,789 shares during the period. Finally, Balboa Wealth Partners increased its stake in International Business Machines by 59.9% in the 3rd quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 2,430 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $537,000 after buying an additional 910 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Company Profile

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.