International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Stock Price Up 1.3% – Time to Buy?

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)’s stock price traded up 1.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $231.67 and last traded at $231.53. 1,099,386 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 4,197,195 shares. The stock had previously closed at $228.62.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on IBM. StockNews.com upgraded shares of International Business Machines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 19th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on International Business Machines from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on International Business Machines from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $194.35.

International Business Machines Stock Up 2.5 %

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $205.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $186.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.12. The company has a market cap of $215.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.22, a PEG ratio of 4.90 and a beta of 0.70.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The technology company reported $2.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $15.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.62 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.59% and a net margin of 13.52%. The company’s revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.18 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th were given a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.85%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is 75.65%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Seven Eight Capital LP acquired a new position in International Business Machines in the 4th quarter worth $476,000. Cresset Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in International Business Machines by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 72,422 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $11,845,000 after acquiring an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $547,000. Northwest Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $206,000. Finally, Ethic Inc. raised its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 126,504 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $20,690,000 after purchasing an additional 7,479 shares during the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.