International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Trading 1.6% Higher – Still a Buy?

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) shot up 1.6% during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $253.31 and last traded at $252.9940. 8,819,711 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 23% from the average daily volume of 7,189,507 shares. The stock had previously closed at $249.10.

Trending Headlines about International Business Machines

Here are the key news stories impacting International Business Machines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan upgraded IBM on improving software growth prospects and raised its price target, boosting investor confidence in the stock. International Business Machines (IBM) Upgraded by JPMorgan as Software Growth Boosts Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: IBM’s partnership with OpenAI to strengthen enterprise cybersecurity gives the company another AI-related growth avenue and could support future software demand. Can IBM’s OpenAI Partnership Strengthen Its Cybersecurity Business?
• Positive Sentiment: IBM also benefited from renewed enthusiasm around quantum computing after U.S. policy support and White House attention highlighted the company’s long-term position in the sector. Trump admits selling IBM’s stock was a mistake. Now he’s cheering its quantum future.
• Positive Sentiment: IBM announced a 5-year U.K. Department of Health contract and extended syndicated credit facilities, both of which support revenue visibility and liquidity. IBM Wins 5-Year Contract from U.K. Department of Health – Analyst Blog

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler raised shares of International Business Machines to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of International Business Machines from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $270.00 to $291.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus set a $290.00 price target on International Business Machines in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, HSBC raised International Business Machines from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $218.00 to $231.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $306.94.

International Business Machines Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $246.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.23, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The company’s 50-day moving average is $252.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $267.90.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The technology company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.81 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $15.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.60 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 15.61% and a return on equity of 37.23%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.60 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Corporation will post 12.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a $1.69 dividend. This represents a $6.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. This is a positive change from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is 59.77%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Business Machines

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IBM. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 97,216,131 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $28,796,390,000 after buying an additional 1,439,824 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in International Business Machines by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,996,293 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $16,290,452,000 after acquiring an additional 518,321 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in International Business Machines by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 22,605,083 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $6,679,105,000 after acquiring an additional 336,069 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its stake in International Business Machines by 29.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 22,021,912 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $6,523,720,000 after acquiring an additional 4,976,756 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 7.0% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 16,063,653 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $3,893,669,000 after acquiring an additional 1,049,602 shares during the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About International Business Machines

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is a global technology and consulting company headquartered in Armonk, New York. Founded in 1911 as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (CTR) and renamed IBM in 1924, the company has evolved from early electromechanical machines to a diversified technology provider serving enterprises and governments worldwide. IBM is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol IBM.

IBM’s principal businesses encompass cloud computing and software, infrastructure and systems, consulting and technology services, and research and development.