Westbourne Investments Inc. Acquires New Stake in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Westbourne Investments Inc. purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 7,503 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $1,649,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in IBM. Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of International Business Machines by 413.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 11,984,609 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,634,577,000 after purchasing an additional 9,650,534 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in International Business Machines in the 4th quarter worth about $1,236,176,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in International Business Machines in the 4th quarter worth about $592,746,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 18.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,845,993 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,384,275,000 after acquiring an additional 1,704,209 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 91,839,252 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $20,189,023,000 after acquiring an additional 1,539,888 shares during the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Business Machines Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE IBM opened at $241.87 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The company has a market cap of $224.28 billion, a P/E 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 firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $243.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $234.03.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The firm had revenue of $14.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.68 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on IBM. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $276.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Monday, April 14th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of International Business Machines from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $242.41.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other International Business Machines news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was 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 directly owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. This trade represents a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

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