International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Shares Up 1% - Here's Why

Key Points

• IBM shares rose 1% in intraday trading, reaching as high as $297.50 before settling near $290.46, with volume below its average daily level.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but constructive: recent calls included a target cut from BMO, a new buy rating from Needham, and an upgrade from Morgan Stanley, leaving IBM with a consensus “Moderate Buy” and average target price of $306.28.
• IBM’s fundamentals and shareholder returns were solid, as the company beat quarterly EPS and revenue expectations, raised its dividend to $1.69 per share, and now offers a 2.3% annualized yield.

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) shares rose 1% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $297.50 and last traded at $290.4580. 4,900,019 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 33% from the average daily volume of 7,271,245 shares. The stock had previously closed at $287.56.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on IBM shares. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on International Business Machines from $290.00 to $270.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Needham & Company LLC initiated coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of International Business Machines from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Susquehanna started coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Friday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $303.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded International Business Machines from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $306.28.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

The stock's 50 day moving average is $263.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $265.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $273.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.68.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The technology company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm 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 company earned $1.60 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Corporation will post 12.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a dividend of $1.69 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This is a positive change from International Business Machines's previous quarterly dividend of $1.68. This represents a $6.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. International Business Machines's dividend payout ratio is presently 59.77%.

Institutional Trading of International Business Machines

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of IBM. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in International Business Machines by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 97,216,131 shares of the technology company's stock worth $28,796,390,000 after purchasing an additional 1,439,824 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,996,293 shares of the technology company's stock worth $16,290,452,000 after buying an additional 518,321 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 22,605,083 shares of the technology company's stock worth $6,679,105,000 after buying an additional 336,069 shares during the period. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in International Business Machines by 29.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 22,021,912 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $6,523,720,000 after acquiring an additional 4,976,756 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in International Business Machines by 7.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 16,063,653 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,893,669,000 after acquiring an additional 1,049,602 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company's stock.

About International Business Machines

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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