Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC Buys Shares of 7,000 International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 7,000 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,539,000.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in International Business Machines in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 134.3% during the fourth quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 157 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Tacita Capital Inc boosted its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 174.3% during the fourth quarter. Tacita Capital Inc now owns 192 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

International Business Machines stock opened at $258.55 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $243.26 and its 200-day moving average is $235.35. The company has a market cap of $240.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.00. International Business Machines Co. has a 12 month low of $163.53 and a 12 month high of $266.45.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $14.54 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.41 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 9.60%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.68 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a $1.68 dividend. This represents a $6.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.60%. This is an increase from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 115.66%.

Insider Transactions at International Business Machines

In other news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total value of $6,715,644.43. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. This trade represents a 37.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on IBM shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $276.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Monday, April 14th. StockNews.com raised International Business Machines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on International Business Machines from $237.00 to $233.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, KGI Securities set a $242.00 target price on International Business Machines and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, International Business Machines has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $248.50.

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.