International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Thursday morning.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $276.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $242.41.

International Business Machines Stock Up 0.3 %

IBM stock traded up $0.81 during trading on Thursday, reaching $233.22. 1,321,179 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,208,264. The company has a market capitalization of $216.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.04. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $245.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $233.92. International Business Machines has a 12 month low of $162.62 and a 12 month high of $266.45.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $14.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.41 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 38.99%. International Business Machines's revenue was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.68 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that International Business Machines will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. International Business Machines's payout ratio is currently 104.21%.

Insider Activity at International Business Machines

In related news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total value of $6,715,644.43. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of International Business Machines

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of IBM. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Avondale Wealth Management raised its stake in International Business Machines by 56.0% in the 4th quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 156 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in International Business Machines by 134.3% during the 4th quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 157 shares of the technology company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company's stock.

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.