Merit Financial Group LLC Buys 3,416 Shares of International Business Machines Corporation $IBM

Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 55,170 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 3,416 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in International Business Machines were worth $15,514,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Portus Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in International Business Machines during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Joseph Group Capital Management bought a new position in International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, SWAN Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company's stock.

International Business Machines News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: IBM successfully connected and cooled two modular cryogenic systems to below 15 millikelvin, creating an architecture intended to link hundreds of quantum chips. The milestone supports IBM’s roadmap toward a 1,000-qubit system by 2027 and the planned fault-tolerant Quantum Starling system in 2029. IBM Connects Its First Modular Cryogenic Systems in Milestone Toward Fault-Tolerant Quantum Computing
• Positive Sentiment: The quantum advance is being viewed as a meaningful engineering step toward fault-tolerant computing, helping support IBM’s differentiated position in quantum technology and contributing to the upward movement in IBM shares. IBM Clears Major Hardware Hurdle on the Path to Its Quantum Supercomputer
• Positive Sentiment: IBM’s Maximo government software-as-a-service product received FedRAMP Moderate authorization, potentially expanding its addressable U.S. government market. Separate commissioned research also reported that Maximo users show higher maintenance maturity than industry peers, supporting the product’s enterprise value proposition. IBM Secures FedRAMP Moderate Authorization For Maximo Government SaaS
• Neutral Sentiment: Arrow Electronics expanded its IBM distribution coverage, which could improve channel reach and support sales growth, but the announcement provided no immediate financial targets. Arrow Electronics Expands IBM Distribution Coverage to Support Channel Growth
• Negative Sentiment: A law firm announced a securities-fraud investigation related to IBM’s prior stock decline. The notice is not an allegation finding or formal determination of wrongdoing, but it adds headline and potential litigation risk. IBM Investor Reminder Securities Fraud Investigation

International Business Machines Stock Performance

NYSE:IBM opened at $237.31 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63. International Business Machines Corporation has a twelve month low of $199.19 and a twelve month high of $332.46. The company has a fifty day moving average of $248.73 and a 200-day moving average of $251.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $223.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 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 (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.93. The business had revenue of $17.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.46 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 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.80 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Corporation will post 12.33 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a dividend of $1.69 per share. This represents a $6.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. International Business Machines's dividend payout ratio is 59.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on IBM. Robert W. Baird began coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. They set a "neutral" rating and a $230.00 price objective for the company. Wolfe Research lowered shares of International Business Machines to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Oppenheimer cut shares of International Business Machines from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Craig Hallum started coverage on International Business Machines in a report on Wednesday. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on International Business Machines from $270.00 to $230.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $265.40.

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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