Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. Has $456,000 Stock Position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. lifted its stake in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 120.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,078 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,136 shares during the quarter. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $456,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 55,671,883 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $12,307,940,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200,803 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in International Business Machines by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,665,256 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,465,223,000 after acquiring an additional 126,547 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its position in International Business Machines by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,195,933 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,148,717,000 after acquiring an additional 294,276 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank boosted its position in International Business Machines by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 2,726,700 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $602,819,000 after acquiring an additional 12,400 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth about $592,746,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other International Business Machines news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total value of $6,715,644.43. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 45,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. This represents a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

International Business Machines Price Performance

Shares of IBM stock opened at $249.72 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $243.21 and its 200-day moving average is $227.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $231.56 billion, a PE ratio of 38.96, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.74. International Business Machines Co. has a 52 week low of $162.62 and a 52 week high of $266.45.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities research analysts expect that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 104.21%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on IBM. Bank of America raised their price objective on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on International Business Machines from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Wedbush started coverage on International Business Machines in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on International Business Machines from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $231.44.

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.