International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Shares Gap Down on Analyst Downgrade

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) shares gapped down prior to trading on Thursday after StockNews.com downgraded the stock from a buy rating to a hold rating. The stock had previously closed at $232.75, but opened at $220.80. International Business Machines shares last traded at $216.96, with a volume of 2,247,389 shares trading hands.

IBM has been the topic of several other reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of International Business Machines to a “moderate sell” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $209.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on International Business Machines from $205.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on International Business Machines from $215.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $208.12.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Business Machines

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of IBM. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 3,674 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $812,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in International Business Machines by 32.9% during the third quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,790 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $3,442,000 after acquiring an additional 3,660 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 15.6% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 32,225 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $7,124,000 after purchasing an additional 4,348 shares during the period. WASHINGTON TRUST Co grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 13,360 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,954,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. Finally, Golden State Equity Partners increased its position in International Business Machines by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 12,045 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,663,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Business Machines Price Performance

The company’s fifty day moving average is $215.16 and its 200 day moving average is $190.25. The stock has a market cap of $197.65 billion, a PE ratio of 23.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.84 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $14.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.08 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 40.59%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.20 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were given a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.65%.

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.