International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Trading Up 0.4% – Should You Buy?

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) traded up 0.4% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $256.93 and last traded at $254.45. 716,252 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 4,792,621 shares. The stock had previously closed at $253.44.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on IBM. Wedbush began coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Monday. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on International Business Machines from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $225.53.

International Business Machines Trading Down 0.4 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. The company has a market capitalization of $233.30 billion, a PE ratio of 39.36, a P/E/G ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.76. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $229.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $216.45.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 9.60%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.73 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 104.21%.

Institutional Trading of International Business Machines

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in International Business Machines during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 1,054.5% during the third quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 127 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Avondale Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is currently 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.