Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Trims Stock Position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. reduced its stake in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 893,262 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 40,281 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $154,490,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in International Business Machines in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. ESL Trust Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its position in International Business Machines by 164.0% in the first quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 198 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on IBM. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on International Business Machines from $215.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. StockNews.com upgraded International Business Machines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 19th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Monday, June 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $200.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $188.60.

International Business Machines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:IBM opened at $217.70 on Friday. 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 stock has a market cap of $199.98 billion, a PE ratio of 24.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 0.70. International Business Machines Co. has a one year low of $135.87 and a one year high of $218.84. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $196.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $184.33.

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

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.07%. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is currently 75.65%.

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.