International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) Short Interest Update

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) was the target of a large drop in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 21,840,000 shares, a drop of 5.6% from the December 15th total of 23,140,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 4,080,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.4 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on IBM shares. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $209.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on International Business Machines from $200.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on International Business Machines from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of 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, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $215.81.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

NYSE IBM opened at $224.73 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $222.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $210.66. International Business Machines has a 1 year low of $162.62 and a 1 year high of $239.35. The firm has a market cap of $207.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.71, a PEG ratio of 4.71 and a beta of 0.74.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $14.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.08 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 10.22% and a return on equity of 40.52%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.20 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that International Business Machines will post 10.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were given a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 12th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 97.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other International Business Machines 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 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 approximately $5,463,928. This represents a 12.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Business Machines

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in IBM. Ellenbecker Investment Group increased its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 2.3% in the third quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group now owns 2,049 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $453,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Goldstein Advisors LLC grew its position in International Business Machines by 4.0% during the third quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,217 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $269,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC increased its stake in International Business Machines by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC now owns 1,346 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,153 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,891,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sollinda Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sollinda Capital Management LLC now owns 1,360 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.