Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Trims Stake in International Business Machines Corporation $IBM

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund reduced its position in International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) by 33.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 308,951 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 154,661 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $91,514,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Family CFO Inc purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Basepoint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, SWAN Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. 58.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

Shares of IBM stock opened at $271.77 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $255.43 billion, a PE ratio of 24.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.67. International Business Machines Corporation has a 52-week low of $212.34 and a 52-week high of $332.46. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $250.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $270.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The technology company reported $1.91 earnings per share (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 analysts’ expectations of $15.60 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 37.23% and a net margin of 15.61%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.60 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that International Business Machines Corporation will post 12.38 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were given a dividend of $1.69 per share. This represents a $6.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This is a positive change from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.68. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is presently 59.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on IBM shares. HSBC raised International Business Machines from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $218.00 to $231.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on International Business Machines from $290.00 to $270.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on International Business Machines from $370.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Barclays initiated coverage on International Business Machines in a research report on Monday, June 1st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $350.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut International Business Machines from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $304.17.

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.