Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Raises Stock Position in International Business Machines Corporation $IBM

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management boosted its IBM stake by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, ending with 116,619 shares valued at about $34.5 million.
• Several other institutional investors also increased their IBM holdings, and hedge funds and institutions now own 58.96% of the company’s stock.
• IBM continues to draw positive attention from Wall Street and for its growth initiatives, including a $10 billion quantum computing investment, a $5 billion Red Hat open-source security push, and a recent earnings beat alongside a higher dividend.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 116,619 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,251 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.'s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $34,544,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Houlihan Financial Resource Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of International Business Machines by 166.2% in the fourth quarter. Houlihan Financial Resource Group Ltd. now owns 3,399 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,021,000 after acquiring an additional 2,122 shares during the period. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of International Business Machines by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,610 shares of the technology company's stock worth $3,143,000 after acquiring an additional 1,251 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of International Business Machines by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 68,706 shares of the technology company's stock worth $20,351,000 after acquiring an additional 7,554 shares during the period. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP grew its stake in International Business Machines by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 62,180 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $18,418,000 after acquiring an additional 819 shares during the period. Finally, Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at $709,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.96% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting International Business Machines

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

• Positive Sentiment: IBM unveiled a more than $10 billion quantum computing investment plan, reinforcing its leadership in an emerging high-growth market. IBM to invest $10 billion for large-scale quantum computer by 2029
• Positive Sentiment: IBM and Red Hat launched Project Lightwell, a $5 billion push to secure open-source software with AI tools and 20,000 engineers, which could strengthen its enterprise security franchise. IBM and Red Hat Commit $5 Billion to Redefine the Future of Open Source in the AI Era
• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush reiterated an Outperform rating and raised its target to $320, signaling continued analyst confidence in IBM’s upside. IBM Is Chasing A '$1 Trillion Value Creation Engine' — And It's Spending $15 Billion To Get There

International Business Machines Price Performance

Shares of IBM opened at $298.26 on Friday. International Business Machines Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $212.34 and a fifty-two week high of $324.90. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $240.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $270.98. The company has a market cap of $280.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.37, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The technology company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.81 by $0.10. International Business Machines had a net margin of 15.61% and a return on equity of 37.23%. The company had revenue of $15.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.60 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research 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 business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th will be issued a $1.69 dividend. This represents a $6.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. This is a positive change from International Business Machines's previous quarterly dividend of $1.68. International Business Machines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on IBM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $317.00 to $283.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $290.00 to $270.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $320.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $290.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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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