International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) Receives $231.13 Average PT from Brokerages

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the seventeen analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have assigned a hold recommendation, seven have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $231.13.

Several research firms have weighed in on IBM. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on International Business Machines from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Monday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Erste Group Bank raised International Business Machines from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Wedbush started coverage on International Business Machines in a report on Monday, February 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company.

International Business Machines Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of IBM stock opened at $229.18 on Friday. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average price is $249.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $232.85. The company has a market cap of $212.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.67. International Business Machines has a 1-year low of $162.62 and a 1-year high of $266.45.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 9.60%. On average, research analysts expect 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.91%. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is currently 104.21%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 $11,387,221.07. This represents a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Business Machines

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in IBM. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in International Business Machines in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in International Business Machines in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Avondale Wealth Management grew its position in International Business Machines by 56.0% in the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 156 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in International Business Machines by 134.3% in the fourth quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 157 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in International Business Machines in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.