International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) Shares Purchased by Clark Capital Management Group Inc.

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 14.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,563 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 808 shares during the quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc.’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $1,443,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in IBM. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,094,106 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $241,885,000 after acquiring an additional 46,951 shares during the period. Avondale Wealth Management increased its holdings in International Business Machines by 56.0% in the 4th quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 156 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in International Business Machines by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 783,798 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $173,282,000 after purchasing an additional 4,330 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its stake in International Business Machines by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 11,304 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,485,000 after purchasing an additional 650 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop National Bank boosted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 34.8% during the fourth quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 7,827 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,721,000 after buying an additional 2,022 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Stock Down 1.9 %

IBM stock opened at $249.32 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $243.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $234.78. International Business Machines Co. has a twelve month low of $163.53 and a twelve month high of $266.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. The stock has a market cap of $231.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.90, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.64.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $14.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.41 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 38.99%. International Business Machines’s quarterly revenue was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.68 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a dividend of $1.68 per share. This is a positive change from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. This represents a $6.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.70%. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is 115.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. KGI Securities set a $242.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $320.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com lowered shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $237.00 to $233.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $248.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at International Business Machines

In related news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total value of $6,715,644.43. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at $11,387,221.07. This represents a 37.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

International Business Machines 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.