International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Shares Down 0.2% – Time to Sell?

Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) fell 0.2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $218.44 and last traded at $219.83. 2,269,007 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 46% from the average session volume of 4,209,730 shares. The stock had previously closed at $220.25.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $200.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. DZ Bank downgraded International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $215.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on International Business Machines from $205.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on International Business Machines from $208.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $208.94.

International Business Machines Stock Up 0.1 %

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 company has a market capitalization of $203.37 billion, a PE ratio of 32.01, a PEG ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 0.73. The company’s 50 day moving average is $220.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $206.80.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $14.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.08 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.52% and a net margin of 10.22%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.20 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.12 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th were given a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 12th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 97.23%.

Insider Activity at International Business Machines

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

Institutional Trading of International Business Machines

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its position in shares of International Business Machines by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 1,245 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $274,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. Old Port Advisors grew its position in shares of International Business Machines by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 20,868 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,588,000 after buying an additional 570 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,094,106 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $241,885,000 after acquiring an additional 46,951 shares in the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC acquired a new stake in International Business Machines in the third quarter valued at approximately $24,761,000. Finally, Brass Tax Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in International Business Machines in the third quarter worth $249,000. 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.