International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) Shares Sold by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 76.4% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 298,138 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 962,784 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $56,931,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of IBM. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the first quarter worth $26,000. Naples Money Management LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Business Machines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:IBM traded down $0.23 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $191.75. 4,294,875 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,459,853. International Business Machines Co. has a 52 week low of $135.87 and a 52 week high of $199.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.12. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $174.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $179.25. The company has a market cap of $176.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 0.71.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The technology company reported $2.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.27. International Business Machines had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 40.59%. The company had revenue of $15.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.18 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 9th. This is a positive change from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.66. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.48%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 75.65%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Monday, June 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $145.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $200.00 to $211.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $184.93.

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.