Avestar Capital LLC Reduces Holdings in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Avestar Capital LLC reduced its position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,604 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 65 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $1,018,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in IBM. FMR LLC increased its position in International Business Machines by 6.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,195,933 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,148,717,000 after buying an additional 294,276 shares during the period. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC grew its position in shares of International Business Machines by 4.3% during the third quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC now owns 26,337 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $5,823,000 after acquiring an additional 1,087 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 585,188 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $129,373,000 after acquiring an additional 5,540 shares during the period. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 9,208 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,036,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Diversified LLC raised its position in International Business Machines by 37.9% in the 3rd quarter. Diversified LLC now owns 5,767 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,275,000 after purchasing an additional 1,586 shares during the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Business Machines Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of IBM opened at $228.85 on Wednesday. International Business Machines Co. has a twelve month low of $154.75 and a twelve month high of $237.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $211.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.31, a PEG ratio of 5.08 and a beta of 0.71. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $219.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $196.43.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.03. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.52% and a net margin of 10.22%. The business had revenue of $14.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.20 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be given a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 97.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on IBM shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $217.00 to $208.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on International Business Machines from $200.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. UBS Group upped their price objective on International Business Machines from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. StockNews.com cut International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on International Business Machines from $215.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, International Business Machines presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $208.12.

Insider Transactions at International Business Machines

In other news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.20, for a total value of $774,720.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 25,390 shares in the company, valued at $5,463,928. This represents a 12.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

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.