Financial Partners Group LLC Purchases 2,982 Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Financial Partners Group LLC raised its stake in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 47.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 9,324 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,982 shares during the period. Financial Partners Group LLC’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $1,780,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of IBM. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new stake in International Business Machines during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC grew its stake in International Business Machines by 971.4% in the third quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 225 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in International Business Machines by 67.9% in the third quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 225 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on IBM. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Wedbush increased their price objective on International Business Machines from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on International Business Machines from $186.00 to $179.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on International Business Machines from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on International Business Machines in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $145.00 price objective for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $182.53.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

IBM traded up $2.10 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $172.95. 4,193,459 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,570,876. International Business Machines Co. has a 1-year low of $131.55 and a 1-year high of $199.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $158.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.27 and a beta of 0.72. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $169.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $176.57.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The technology company reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.09. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.21% and a net margin of 13.18%. The firm had revenue of $14.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.53 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.36 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that International Business Machines Co. will post 9.9 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th were paid a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.86%. This is a positive change from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 9th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 75.65%.

International Business Machines Company 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.