National Pension Service Has $272.37 Million Stock Position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

National Pension Service boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,665,386 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 36,403 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $272,374,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of IBM. Naples Money Management LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new position in International Business Machines in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC grew its position 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 acquiring an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 67.9% during the third quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 225 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cordant Inc. increased its position in International Business Machines by 753.3% during the 4th quarter. Cordant Inc. now owns 256 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Business Machines Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of IBM traded down $1.75 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $166.48. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,311,318 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,892,348. International Business Machines Co. has a 1 year low of $120.55 and a 1 year high of $199.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32. The company has a market cap of $152.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a fifty day moving average of $185.11 and a 200 day moving average of $171.88.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The technology company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $14.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.53 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 13.18% and a return on equity of 40.21%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.36 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that International Business Machines Co. will post 9.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $1.67 dividend. This is a positive change from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.66. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.01%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 75.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $165.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Bank of America raised their price objective on International Business Machines from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. UBS Group raised their target price on International Business Machines from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on International Business Machines from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $181.29.

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.