International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Stock Price Down 0.8% – Time to Sell?

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) shares traded down 0.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $224.27 and last traded at $226.92. 2,995,121 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 29% from the average session volume of 4,246,416 shares. The stock had previously closed at $228.83.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on IBM. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Thursday, October 24th. DZ Bank downgraded shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $215.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on International Business Machines from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective 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. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, International Business Machines currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $208.12.

International Business Machines Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $209.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.03, a P/E/G ratio of 5.08 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $220.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $196.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.06.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $14.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.08 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.20 EPS. International Business Machines’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at International Business Machines

In other news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.20, for a total value of $774,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 25,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,463,928. The trade was a 12.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Business Machines

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in International Business Machines by 22.9% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,622,432 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $381,683,000 after buying an additional 302,675 shares in the last quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 0.6% in the third quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 12,125 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,681,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Blankinship & Foster LLC raised its position in International Business Machines by 5,903.1% in the 3rd quarter. Blankinship & Foster LLC now owns 77,980 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $17,240,000 after purchasing an additional 76,681 shares in the last quarter. Destination Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter. Destination Wealth Management now owns 2,299 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $508,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 333.4% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 92,363 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $20,420,000 after purchasing an additional 71,051 shares in the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.