International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Shares Down 0.4% – Here’s What Happened

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) traded down 0.4% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $220.83 and last traded at $223.15. 2,618,304 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 14% from the average session volume of 3,043,556 shares. The stock had previously closed at $223.96.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IBM has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com lowered shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $209.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $214.88.

International Business Machines Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $206.33 billion, a PE ratio of 32.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $221.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $208.59.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $14.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.08 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 10.22% and a return on equity of 40.52%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.20 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.12 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were given a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.99%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 97.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.20, for a total transaction of $774,720.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 25,390 shares in the company, valued at $5,463,928. This trade represents a 12.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Private Trust Co. increased its position in shares of International Business Machines by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. now owns 3,070 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $675,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank lifted its stake in International Business Machines by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 15,722 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $3,456,000 after purchasing an additional 985 shares during the last quarter. InvesTrust purchased a new stake in International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth approximately $7,851,000. Range Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in International Business Machines by 145.9% during the fourth quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 7,307 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,606,000 after purchasing an additional 4,336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Spartan Planning & Wealth Management purchased a new stake in International Business Machines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $371,000. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About International Business Machines

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.