International Business Machines Corporation $IBM Shares Sold by Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV

Key Points

• Nations Financial Group cut its IBM position by 37.1% in the second quarter, selling 8,589 shares and retaining 14,566 shares valued at approximately $4.1 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 58.96% of IBM.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive but cautious: IBM has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from 28 analysts, with an average price target of $265.40, despite several firms recently lowering their targets.
• IBM’s latest quarterly results matched expectations on earnings at $2.93 per share, while revenue of $17.16 billion fell short of forecasts. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.69, equivalent to a 2.9% annual yield.

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lowered its holdings in International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) by 37.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,566 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 8,589 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV's holdings in International Business Machines were worth $4,096,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,446,429,000. Capital World Investors grew its position in shares of International Business Machines by 29.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 22,021,912 shares of the technology company's stock worth $6,523,720,000 after buying an additional 4,976,756 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of International Business Machines by 83.4% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,617,117 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,663,847,000 after buying an additional 2,553,552 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 359.6% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,896,675 shares of the technology company's stock worth $561,814,000 after buying an additional 1,484,026 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake 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 worth $28,796,390,000 after buying an additional 1,439,824 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on IBM. Argus reduced their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $360.00 to $280.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $293.00 to $190.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Wolfe Research cut shares of International Business Machines to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wedbush set a $350.00 price target on International Business Machines in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on International Business Machines from $290.00 to $235.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 20th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $265.40.

Key Stories Impacting International Business Machines

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

• Positive Sentiment: Industry research projects the global hyperscale data-center market will expand from $162.79 billion in 2024 to $608.54 billion by 2030, driven by AI, machine learning and cloud-computing demand. This supports IBM’s infrastructure, consulting and hybrid-cloud opportunities, although the report is not an IBM-specific contract announcement. Hyperscale Data Center Market Surges to $608.54 billion
• Positive Sentiment: IBM’s modular cryogenic technology is designed to help scale its quantum systems toward 1,000 programmable qubits and support its Quantum Starling plans by 2029. The development strengthens IBM’s technology narrative and long-term growth potential, though commercial revenue benefits remain several years away. Can IBM Scale Quantum Computing With Its New Cryogenic Systems?
• Positive Sentiment: A power producer and Cohesive received an award for improving workplace safety using IBM Maximo, providing third-party recognition of the software’s industrial asset-management capabilities. The item is supportive of IBM’s enterprise-software credibility but does not indicate a material near-term financial impact. CEPR and Cohesive Receive Maximo Award
• Neutral Sentiment: A Zacks review notes that IBM has risen 13.1% since its latest earnings report, indicating continued investor support after the results. However, the company’s reported revenue missed expectations while earnings per share matched estimates, leaving valuation and execution important considerations. Why Is IBM Up Since Its Last Earnings Report?
• Negative Sentiment: Bleichmar Fonti & Auld announced an investigation into potential securities-law violations related to IBM’s prior stock decline. The notice appears to be an investor-solicitation announcement rather than a finding of wrongdoing, but it can weigh on sentiment and introduce potential legal risk. IBM Ongoing Investigation

International Business Machines Stock Up 1.1%

IBM stock opened at $236.17 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.74. International Business Machines Corporation has a 1-year low of $199.19 and a 1-year high of $332.46. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $247.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $250.88. The firm has a market cap of $222.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.96, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.70.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The technology company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.93. International Business Machines had a net margin of 15.52% and a return on equity of 35.65%. The company had revenue of $17.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.80 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that International Business Machines Corporation will post 12.33 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be issued a $1.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $6.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. International Business Machines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.98%.

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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