Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 15,195 Shares of International Business Machines Corporation $IBM

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) by 28.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 37,450 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 15,195 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $10,567,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,011,122,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in International Business Machines by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 95,051,475 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $28,019,274,000 after buying an additional 1,913,708 shares in the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in International Business Machines by 27,928.2% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,903,116 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $561,001,000 after buying an additional 1,896,326 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 39.6% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,052,880 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $861,401,000 after acquiring an additional 865,253 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 45.8% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,313,241 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $387,118,000 after acquiring an additional 412,574 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on IBM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on International Business Machines from $312.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $361.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 11th. Erste Group Bank cut shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $320.87.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Michael Miebach purchased 434 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $233.33 per share, for a total transaction of $101,265.22. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,265.22. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David N. Farr acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 30th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $304.00 per share, with a total value of $304,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 9,258 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,814,432. This trade represents a 12.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 1,484 shares of company stock worth $417,157. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

International Business Machines Trading Down 2.1%

International Business Machines stock opened at $253.38 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.92. International Business Machines Corporation has a one year low of $214.50 and a one year high of $324.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $237.68 billion, a PE ratio of 22.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.73. The business’s fifty day moving average is $280.69 and its 200 day moving average is $284.68.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The technology company reported $4.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.33 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $19.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.23 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.15% and a net margin of 15.69%.International Business Machines’s revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.92 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that International Business Machines Corporation will post 10.78 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.68 per share. This represents a $6.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 10th. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is presently 60.27%.

International Business Machines Company Profile

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.