Boston Research & Management Inc. Sells 1,220 Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Boston Research & Management Inc. reduced its position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 27.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,213 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 1,220 shares during the period. Boston Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $706,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth approximately $242,000. Brady Martz Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth $1,940,000. Tranquilli Financial Advisor LLC bought a new stake in International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at about $373,000. Truist Financial Corp grew its position in International Business Machines by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 811,062 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $178,296,000 after buying an additional 49,591 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of International Business Machines by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 75,638 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $16,615,000 after purchasing an additional 4,625 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on IBM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on International Business Machines from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on International Business Machines from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $231.44.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. This trade represents a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

IBM opened at $243.83 on Monday. 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 fifty day moving average price of $249.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $231.62. The stock has a market cap of $226.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.04, a P/E/G ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.74. International Business Machines Co. has a 1 year low of $162.62 and a 1 year high of $266.45.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 9.60%. Equities research analysts anticipate 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 104.21%.

International Business Machines 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.