Northern Trust Corp Purchases 1,704,209 Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) by 18.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,845,993 shares of the technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,704,209 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.17% of International Business Machines worth $2,384,275,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on IBM. Bank of America increased their price target on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $237.00 to $233.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Oppenheimer started coverage on International Business Machines in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $320.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, International Business Machines currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $242.41.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. The trade was a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

International Business Machines Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE IBM traded up $2.48 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $241.87. 5,135,394 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,206,500. The business has a 50 day moving average of $244.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $233.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $224.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.73, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.67. International Business Machines Co. has a 1 year low of $162.62 and a 1 year high of $266.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82.

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

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a $1.68 dividend. This represents a $6.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.78%. This is a boost from International Business Machines's previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. International Business Machines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 114.97%.

About International Business Machines

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.