Freedom Investment Management Inc. Sells 785 Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Freedom Investment Management Inc. decreased its stake in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 7.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,193 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 785 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $2,241,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in IBM. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 91,839,252 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $20,189,023,000 after purchasing an additional 1,539,888 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,909,646 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,589,145,000 after purchasing an additional 427,499 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in International Business Machines by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,665,256 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,465,223,000 after buying an additional 126,547 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,236,176,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in International Business Machines by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,036,860 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $887,423,000 after purchasing an additional 194,814 shares during the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at International Business Machines

In other news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. The trade was a 37.10 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

International Business Machines stock opened at $238.45 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $221.10 billion, a PE ratio of 37.20, a P/E/G ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $247.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $233.36. International Business Machines Co. has a 12-month low of $162.62 and a 12-month high of $266.45.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 9.60%. As a group, analysts expect that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.80%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 104.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com cut International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $276.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Monday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $232.75.

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.