International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Shares Down 0.7%

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)’s share price traded down 0.7% on Friday . The company traded as low as $173.95 and last traded at $174.53. 450,180 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 4,488,775 shares. The stock had previously closed at $175.73.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on IBM. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on International Business Machines in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $145.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $215.00 to $210.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on International Business Machines from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Wedbush lifted their target price on International Business Machines from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $182.53.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.13. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $169.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $176.75. The firm has a market cap of $160.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.71.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The technology company reported $1.68 earnings per share (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 business had revenue of $14.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.53 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.36 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that International Business Machines Co. will post 9.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th were issued a $1.67 dividend. This is a positive change from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.66. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 9th. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is currently 75.65%.

Institutional Trading of International Business Machines

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in IBM. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in International Business Machines in the third quarter valued at approximately $801,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 202,557 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $28,414,000 after buying an additional 7,863 shares during the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 363,259 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $50,973,000 after buying an additional 20,563 shares during the period. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 41.7% in the third quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 14,383 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,018,000 after buying an additional 4,230 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its position in International Business Machines by 0.4% during the third quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 150,151 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $21,066,000 after acquiring an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

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.