Baker Avenue Asset Management LP Purchases 27,131 Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Baker Avenue Asset Management LP increased its position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) by 70.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 65,722 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 27,131 shares during the quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP's holdings in International Business Machines were worth $14,448,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Avondale Wealth Management boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 56.0% during the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 156 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 134.3% in the 4th quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 157 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at International Business Machines

In other International Business Machines news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of International Business Machines stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total transaction of $6,715,644.43. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. The trade was a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

International Business Machines Trading Up 2.4 %

IBM opened at $245.49 on Friday. International Business Machines Co. has a fifty-two week low of $163.53 and a fifty-two week high of $266.45. The company has a market cap of $228.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $243.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $234.15.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $14.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.41 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 9.60%. The firm's revenue was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.68 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be paid a $1.68 dividend. This is a boost from International Business Machines's previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. This represents a $6.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.74%. International Business Machines's dividend payout ratio is 115.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on IBM shares. Bank of America upped their price target on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of International Business Machines from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "sell" rating and set a $170.00 price objective (up from $160.00) on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $276.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Monday, April 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $248.50.

International Business Machines 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.

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