International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Given Outperform Rating at Wedbush

Wedbush reiterated their outperform rating on shares of International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) in a report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Wedbush currently has a $320.00 price objective on the technology company’s stock.

IBM has been the topic of several other research reports. Argus set a $360.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Friday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $290.00 to $270.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $290.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Erste Group Bank cut shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $380.00 to $320.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $294.41.

International Business Machines Stock Up 12.9%

Shares of International Business Machines stock opened at $298.26 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.80. International Business Machines has a 52-week low of $212.34 and a 52-week high of $324.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $280.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.58. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $240.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $270.98.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The technology company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.81 by $0.10. International Business Machines had a net margin of 15.61% and a return on equity of 37.23%. The firm had revenue of $15.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.60 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that International Business Machines will post 12.4 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be issued a $1.69 dividend. This represents a $6.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. This is an increase from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.68. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.77%.

Institutional Trading of International Business Machines

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Blue Fin Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 10.0% in the first quarter. Blue Fin Capital Inc. now owns 1,101 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $267,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Security Financial Services INC. boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 2.4% in the first quarter. Security Financial Services INC. now owns 2,393 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $580,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 7.8% in the first quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 20,300 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,921,000 after acquiring an additional 1,471 shares in the last quarter. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in International Business Machines in the first quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Summitry LLC boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 2.1% in the first quarter. Summitry LLC now owns 2,571 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $623,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting International Business Machines

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

• Positive Sentiment: IBM unveiled a more than $10 billion quantum computing investment plan, reinforcing its leadership in an emerging high-growth market. IBM to invest $10 billion for large-scale quantum computer by 2029
• Positive Sentiment: IBM and Red Hat launched Project Lightwell, a $5 billion push to secure open-source software with AI tools and 20,000 engineers, which could strengthen its enterprise security franchise. IBM and Red Hat Commit $5 Billion to Redefine the Future of Open Source in the AI Era
• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush reiterated an Outperform rating and raised its target to $320, signaling continued analyst confidence in IBM’s upside. IBM Is Chasing A ‘$1 Trillion Value Creation Engine’ — And It’s Spending $15 Billion To Get There

International Business Machines Company Profile

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.