International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Given New $260.00 Price Target at Robert W. Baird

Key Points

• Robert W. Baird raised IBM’s price target to $260 from $230 while maintaining a “neutral” rating, implying approximately 3.7% upside. The broader analyst consensus is “Moderate Buy,” with an average target of $258.36.
• IBM reported quarterly earnings of $2.95 per share and revenue of $17.10 billion, exceeding estimates of $2.85 per share and $16.82 billion. Revenue increased 4.7% year over year, and analysts project full-year EPS of $12.34.
• IBM shares opened at $250.67, near the updated target, while institutional investors own 58.96% of the stock. Senior Vice President Robert Thomas recently sold 25,000 shares, reducing his position by 34.34%.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by stock analysts at Robert W. Baird from $230.00 to $260.00 in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "neutral" rating on the technology company's stock. Robert W. Baird's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 3.72% from the stock's current price.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on IBM. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $270.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Friday, October 9th. They set a "hold" rating and a $240.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $280.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Thursday. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered International Business Machines from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, September 12th. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $258.36.

International Business Machines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE IBM opened at $250.67 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $232.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $243.60. International Business Machines has a 1-year low of $199.19 and a 1-year high of $332.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The company has a market cap of $236.16 billion, a PE ratio of 22.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.73.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The technology company reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.85 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $17.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.82 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 15.52% and a return on equity of 35.65%. International Business Machines's revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.65 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that International Business Machines will post 12.34 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at International Business Machines

In other news, SVP Robert Thomas sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.32, for a total transaction of $5,758,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 47,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,009,296. This represents a 34.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of International Business Machines

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in IBM. Ledyard National Bank boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 1.1% during the third quarter. Ledyard National Bank now owns 15,757 shares of the technology company's stock worth $3,465,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC grew its position in International Business Machines by 66.3% in the third quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,159 shares of the technology company's stock worth $915,000 after buying an additional 1,658 shares during the last quarter. Boothe Investment Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 11.9% in the third quarter. Boothe Investment Group Inc. now owns 11,632 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,558,000 after buying an additional 1,239 shares in the last quarter. JSF Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 21.8% in the third quarter. JSF Financial LLC now owns 1,359 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $299,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 85,376 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $18,777,000 after acquiring an additional 1,225 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company's stock.

More International Business Machines News

Here are the key news stories impacting International Business Machines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 results exceeded expectations. IBM reported adjusted earnings of $2.95 per share versus the $2.85 consensus and revenue of $17.1 billion versus estimates of $16.82 billion. Revenue increased 4.7% year over year, while net income rose to $2.2 billion. IBM beats on top and bottom lines
• Positive Sentiment: Software and infrastructure returned to growth. Software revenue rose about 8% to $7.8 billion and infrastructure revenue increased 4% to $3.7 billion, suggesting delayed customer deals began closing. IBM also raised its full-year software outlook. IBM raises annual software revenue outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Cash-flow expectations improved. IBM raised its full-year free-cash-flow outlook, expecting growth of more than $1 billion from the prior year. Quarterly free cash flow reached $3.0 billion, up approximately $700 million year over year. The board also declared a $1.69 quarterly dividend, equivalent to $6.76 annually and a yield of roughly 2.7%. IBM Q3 revenue rises to $17.1 billion
• Neutral Sentiment: IBM maintained its forecast for full-year constant-currency revenue growth of 4% to 5%, indicating improving execution but not a major acceleration in overall growth.
• Negative Sentiment: AI commentary triggered the reversal. CEO Arvind Krishna said open-weight AI models can deliver roughly 90% of frontier-model performance at about 10% of the cost. Investors interpreted the comments as evidence that AI capabilities may become commoditized, potentially limiting pricing power and returns across the AI ecosystem. IBM CEO discusses open AI models
• Negative Sentiment: Investors were also unsettled by a narrower-than-expected gross margin and the possibility that strong headline results do not translate into faster earnings growth. Shares therefore reversed their initial post-earnings increase and traded lower in premarket activity. IBM earnings reversal

International Business Machines Company Profile

International Business Machines Corporation NYSE: IBM, commonly known as IBM, is a global technology and consulting company that helps organizations modernize their information technology and business operations. Its offerings include hybrid cloud solutions, artificial intelligence software and services, enterprise software, IT infrastructure, cybersecurity, data analytics, and technology consulting.

IBM provides products and services to businesses, governments, and other institutions across industries and regions worldwide.

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