International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Shares Gap Up to $181.25

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $181.25, but opened at $185.59. International Business Machines shares last traded at $183.71, with a volume of 832,001 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

IBM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on International Business Machines in a research report on Friday, January 5th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $180.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com lowered International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Wednesday. Bank of America upped their price objective on International Business Machines from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Evercore upgraded International Business Machines from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $165.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Friday, January 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $178.67.

International Business Machines Stock Down 0.4 %

The stock has a market cap of $167.81 billion, a PE ratio of 22.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $188.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $168.54.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The technology company reported $3.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.78 by $0.09. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 39.55% and a net margin of 12.13%. The firm had revenue of $17.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.60 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.07 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 9th were given a dividend of $1.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 8th. This represents a $6.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.63%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.67%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IBM. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new position in International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC acquired a new position in International Business Machines in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Live Oak Investment Partners acquired a new position in International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. 58.96% of the stock is 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.