International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Trading 2.4% Higher – Time to Buy?

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) shares shot up 2.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $251.37 and last traded at $249.0920. Approximately 6,452,899 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 16% from the average session volume of 7,710,577 shares. The stock had previously closed at $243.29.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on IBM shares. Roth Capital reissued a “buy” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Craig Hallum initiated coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $270.00 to $230.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $293.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $288.00 to $262.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $265.90.

International Business Machines Stock Up 2.4%

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $236.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $246.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $234.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.79.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The technology company reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.93. The firm had revenue of $17.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.46 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 15.52% and a return on equity of 35.65%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.80 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that International Business Machines Corporation will post 12.33 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th were given a dividend of $1.69 per share. This represents a $6.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Robert Thomas sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.32, for a total transaction of $5,758,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 47,800 shares in the company, valued at $11,009,296. This represents a 34.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of International Business Machines

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in IBM. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in International Business Machines by 28,068.3% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 400,522,341 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $112,630,888,000 after buying an additional 399,100,449 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 2nd quarter worth about $21,586,659,000. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,996,293 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $16,290,452,000 after acquiring an additional 518,321 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in International Business Machines by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 22,605,083 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $6,679,105,000 after purchasing an additional 336,069 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors lifted its position in International Business Machines by 29.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 22,021,912 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $6,523,720,000 after purchasing an additional 4,976,756 shares during the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Business Machines Company Profile

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is a global technology and consulting company that provides enterprise-focused hardware, software and services. Its offerings include hybrid cloud solutions, artificial intelligence, data and automation software, cybersecurity tools, IT infrastructure and technology consulting.

IBM develops and supports enterprise systems such as IBM Z mainframes, Power servers and storage products. Its software portfolio includes Red Hat hybrid cloud technologies, the watsonx platform for artificial intelligence and data management, application integration tools and cybersecurity solutions.