International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) Shares Bought by WealthTrust Axiom LLC

WealthTrust Axiom LLC increased its holdings in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 55,118 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 740 shares during the period. International Business Machines makes up 3.0% of WealthTrust Axiom LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. WealthTrust Axiom LLC’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $9,015,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in IBM. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of International Business Machines by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 82,076,195 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $11,515,290,000 after acquiring an additional 365,388 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 13.4% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 16,257,789 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,280,968,000 after purchasing an additional 1,919,490 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 4.2% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,970,674 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,398,886,000 after acquiring an additional 404,948 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,691,369 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,219,399,000 after buying an additional 807,357 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System raised its position in shares of International Business Machines by 15.9% during the third quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 6,345,842 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $890,322,000 after purchasing an additional 871,247 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IBM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on International Business Machines from $186.00 to $179.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. UBS Group raised their price objective 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. Evercore ISI raised shares of International Business Machines from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $165.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Friday, January 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased 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 report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $184.08.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE IBM traded down $1.35 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $166.08. 2,750,808 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,982,739. International Business Machines Co. has a 1 year low of $120.55 and a 1 year high of $199.18. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $187.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $170.72. The stock has a market cap of $152.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.82, a PEG ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The technology company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $14.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.53 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.21% and a net margin of 13.18%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.36 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that International Business Machines Co. will post 9.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.02%. This is a positive change from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.66. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is currently 75.20%.

International Business Machines 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.