International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Stifel Nicolaus Analyst Says

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) had its price target lifted by Stifel Nicolaus from $290.00 to $310.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the technology company's stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $237.00 to $233.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. KGI Securities set a $242.00 price objective on International Business Machines and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on International Business Machines from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $264.94.

International Business Machines Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of IBM traded up $0.12 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $282.04. The stock had a trading volume of 3,333,326 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,226,449. International Business Machines has a 12 month low of $181.81 and a 12 month high of $296.16. The company has a market capitalization of $262.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.54, a P/E/G ratio of 5.94 and a beta of 0.69. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $275.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $253.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $14.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.41 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 37.43% and a net margin of 8.71%. The business's revenue was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.68 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that International Business Machines 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 was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were paid a dividend of $1.68 per share. This represents a $6.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. This is an increase from International Business Machines's previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. International Business Machines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 115.66%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Business Machines

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Capital World Investors increased its stake in International Business Machines by 413.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 11,984,609 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,634,577,000 after acquiring an additional 9,650,534 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in International Business Machines in the fourth quarter worth $1,236,176,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in International Business Machines by 29,564.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,399,790 shares of the technology company's stock worth $10,940,520,000 after purchasing an additional 4,384,958 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC bought a new stake in International Business Machines during the first quarter worth approximately $1,040,057,000. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $960,386,000. Institutional investors 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.