International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Stock Price Up 0.5% on Analyst Upgrade

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) shares rose 0.5% on Monday after Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on the stock from $210.00 to $215.00. Sanford C. Bernstein currently has a market perform rating on the stock. International Business Machines traded as high as $224.35 and last traded at $223.70. Approximately 741,760 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 2,353,201 shares. The stock had previously closed at $222.65.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on IBM. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on International Business Machines from $200.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $205.00 to $246.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. DZ Bank downgraded shares of International Business Machines from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $215.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of International Business Machines from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, International Business Machines currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $214.88.

Insider Activity

In other International Business Machines news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.20, for a total value of $774,720.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 25,390 shares in the company, valued at $5,463,928. The trade was a 12.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Business Machines

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. lifted its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 1,054.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 127 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the third quarter worth $29,000. Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group purchased a new stake in International Business Machines during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company's stock.

International Business Machines Trading Up 0.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.06. The firm has a market cap of $205.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.41, a P/E/G ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 0.74. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $220.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $208.12.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.03. International Business Machines had a net margin of 10.22% and a return on equity of 40.52%. The company had revenue of $14.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.20 earnings per share. International Business Machines's revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. International Business Machines's dividend payout ratio is 97.23%.

International Business Machines Company Profile

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.