International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Stock Price Up 0.5% – Should You Buy?

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) shares shot up 0.5% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $230.36 and last traded at $227.97. 690,523 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 4,230,763 shares. The stock had previously closed at $226.92.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IBM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $215.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on International Business Machines from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Bank of America increased their price objective on International Business Machines from $209.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on International Business Machines from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on International Business Machines from $217.00 to $208.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $208.12.

International Business Machines Stock Up 0.2 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $210.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.18, a P/E/G ratio of 5.09 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $220.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $196.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16.

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

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is presently 97.23%.

Insider Activity at International Business Machines

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Business Machines

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of IBM. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 40.9% in the third quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 572 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $126,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in International Business Machines during the second quarter valued at approximately $7,160,000. Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the third quarter worth approximately $5,117,000. Aljian Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the third quarter worth $611,000. Finally, Focused Wealth Management Inc raised its position in shares of International Business Machines by 52.2% during the 3rd quarter. Focused Wealth Management Inc now owns 11,327 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,504,000 after purchasing an additional 3,887 shares during the period. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.