SMART Wealth LLC Sells 3,793 Shares of International Business Machines Corporation $IBM

SMART Wealth LLC decreased its stake in shares of International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) by 46.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,388 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 3,793 shares during the period. SMART Wealth LLC’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $1,238,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of IBM. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 2nd quarter worth $2,011,122,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in International Business Machines by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 95,051,475 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $28,019,274,000 after purchasing an additional 1,913,708 shares in the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 27,928.2% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,903,116 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $561,001,000 after buying an additional 1,896,326 shares in the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $133,771,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of International Business Machines by 45.8% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,313,241 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $387,118,000 after acquiring an additional 412,574 shares during the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on IBM shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $361.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 11th. Oppenheimer set a $380.00 price objective on International Business Machines and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group set a $317.00 price objective on International Business Machines in a report on Thursday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $330.07.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David N. Farr acquired 1,000 shares of International Business Machines stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $304.00 per share, with a total value of $304,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 9,258 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,814,432. The trade was a 12.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting International Business Machines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: IBM says it will triple U.S. entry-level hiring in 2026, recasting junior roles for the AI era — a sign management is investing in talent to scale AI initiatives and support growth despite automation risk. IBM tripling Gen Z hiring
• Positive Sentiment: Confluent shareholders approved the merger agreement with an IBM subsidiary, clearing a regulatory/transactional hurdle that supports IBM’s data-streaming and hybrid cloud strategy if the deal closes. Confluent shareholders approve IBM acquisition
• Positive Sentiment: Product/technology updates — IBM highlighted AI-related enhancements to FlashSystem storage and QRadar security, reinforcing its enterprise storage/security positioning that supports recurring revenue and cross-sell into large customers. IBM AI FlashSystem And QRadar Updates
• Neutral Sentiment: IBM has been a trending stock on retail news sites and equity screens — heightened attention can amplify moves in either direction but doesn’t imply fundamental change on its own. Zacks trending stock note
• Neutral Sentiment: Small institutional portfolio moves: Advisors Asset Management disclosed a modest trimming of IBM (~-20.9k shares in the 12/31/25 13F update) — routine reweights can add volume but aren’t necessarily a directional signal. Quiver Quant fund update
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual options activity: traders bought a large block of put options (56,108 contracts, ~+42% vs. average), signaling elevated hedging or directional bearish bets that can amplify downside moves. (No article link available)
• Negative Sentiment: Short-seller criticism: veteran short seller Jim Chanos publicly called IBM “an AI risk, not an AI leader,” arguing market expectations for IBM’s AI leadership may be overstated — this negative publicity could pressure sentiment and invite further sell-side scrutiny. Chanos calls IBM an AI risk

International Business Machines Stock Up 1.1%

IBM opened at $262.33 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $299.24 and a 200 day moving average of $284.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. International Business Machines Corporation has a 12 month low of $214.50 and a 12 month high of $324.90. The company has a market cap of $245.21 billion, a PE ratio of 23.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.69.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The technology company reported $4.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.33 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $19.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.23 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.15% and a net margin of 15.69%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.92 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that International Business Machines Corporation will post 10.78 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $1.68 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 10th. This represents a $6.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.27%.

About International Business Machines

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is a global technology and consulting company headquartered in Armonk, New York. Founded in 1911 as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (CTR) and renamed IBM in 1924, the company has evolved from early electromechanical machines to a diversified technology provider serving enterprises and governments worldwide. IBM is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol IBM.

IBM’s principal businesses encompass cloud computing and software, infrastructure and systems, consulting and technology services, and research and development.