International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Stock Price Up 0.4% Following Dividend Announcement

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) shot up 0.4% on Thursday following a dividend announcement from the company. The company traded as high as $206.22 and last traded at $205.82. 832,372 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 4,250,930 shares. The stock had previously closed at $204.90.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 97.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IBM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com lowered International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on International Business Machines from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $217.00 to $208.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $208.12.

International Business Machines Stock Up 0.7 %

The company has a market cap of $191.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 0.70. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $216.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $191.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.03. International Business Machines had a net margin of 10.22% and a return on equity of 40.52%. The business had revenue of $14.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.20 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.11 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Business Machines

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 1st quarter worth $26,000. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new stake in International Business Machines in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. lifted its holdings in International Business Machines by 1,054.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 127 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

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.