Handelsbanken Fonder AB Acquires 9,821 Shares of International Business Machines Corporation $IBM

Key Points

• Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its IBM stake by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, buying 9,821 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 340,635 shares worth about $100.9 million.
• IBM reported strong quarterly results, with earnings per share of $1.91 beating estimates and revenue of $15.92 billion topping forecasts; revenue also rose 9.5% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend slightly to $1.69 per share, while analysts currently have a Moderate Buy consensus on the stock with an average price target of $294.41.

Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) by 3.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 340,635 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 9,821 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in International Business Machines were worth $100,899,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of IBM. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 13.9% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 17,045,156 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $4,809,461,000 after buying an additional 2,077,506 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 97,216,131 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $28,796,390,000 after purchasing an additional 1,439,824 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 39.6% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,052,880 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $861,401,000 after purchasing an additional 865,253 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 64.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,162,741 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $610,239,000 after purchasing an additional 849,500 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 17.9% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 4,777,516 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,382,695,000 after purchasing an additional 725,191 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at International Business Machines

In other International Business Machines news, Director Michael Miebach acquired 434 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $233.33 per share, for a total transaction of $101,265.22. Following the acquisition, the director owned 434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,265.22. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

International Business Machines Stock Up 1.6%

International Business Machines stock opened at $222.84 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $239.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $274.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The firm has a market cap of $209.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.58. International Business Machines Corporation has a twelve month low of $212.34 and a twelve month high of $324.90.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The technology company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.81 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $15.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.60 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 37.23% and a net margin of 15.61%.International Business Machines's revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.60 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that International Business Machines Corporation will post 12.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th will be issued a dividend of $1.69 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $6.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. This is a boost from International Business Machines's previous quarterly dividend of $1.68. International Business Machines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on IBM shares. HSBC upgraded International Business Machines from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $218.00 to $231.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings lowered International Business Machines from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on International Business Machines from $380.00 to $320.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Argus set a $360.00 price target on International Business Machines in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered International Business Machines from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, International Business Machines has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $294.41.

International Business Machines Profile

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is a global technology and consulting company headquartered in Armonk, New York. Founded in 1911 as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (CTR) and renamed IBM in 1924, the company has evolved from early electromechanical machines to a diversified technology provider serving enterprises and governments worldwide. IBM is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol IBM.

IBM's principal businesses encompass cloud computing and software, infrastructure and systems, consulting and technology services, and research and development.

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