International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Shares Up 1.1% – Here’s What Happened

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM)’s share price shot up 1.1% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $264.66 and last traded at $262.3280. 6,785,198 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 25% from the average session volume of 5,421,600 shares. The stock had previously closed at $259.52.

More International Business Machines News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Confluent shareholders approved the merger agreement with an IBM subsidiary, advancing IBM’s planned acquisition of Confluent and bolstering its real-time data/streaming capabilities—strategic for AI workloads and software revenue expansion. Confluent Shareholders Approve IBM Acquisition Merger Agreement
• Positive Sentiment: IBM says it will triple US entry-level hiring and recast roles for the AI era, signaling investment in talent to scale AI services and long?term innovation—supportive for future revenue and margin expansion. IBM is tripling the number of Gen Z entry-level jobs after finding the limits of AI adoption
• Positive Sentiment: Product updates to IBM’s FlashSystem and QRadar emphasize storage and security positioning in AI deployments—helps drive upsell to large enterprise customers and supports the company’s hybrid cloud/AI narrative. IBM AI FlashSystem And QRadar Updates Shape Storage And Security Story
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks flags IBM as a trending stock and summarizes factors investors should consider (valuation, earnings outlook, momentum); useful context but not new company-specific catalysts. International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) Is a Trending Stock: Facts to Know Before Betting on It
• Neutral Sentiment: Inclusion/mention of IBM in dividend?aristocrat stock roundups reinforces income appeal to dividend investors, but it’s a reminder rather than a new catalyst. 3 Dividend Aristocrat Stocks To Buy for Reliable Income In 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage noting partnerships/visibility (e.g., with Datavault AI and NFL exposure) can raise brand and event-driven awareness but is more relevant to small-partner stocks than a material IBM catalyst. Datavault AI Death Cross Collides With IBM, Super Bowl Boost
• Negative Sentiment: A 13F filing shows Advisors Asset Management trimmed ~11% of its IBM position, a modest sign of institutional profit?taking that could add selling pressure if broader redemptions continue. Fund Update: Advisors Asset Management, Inc. Just Disclosed New Holdings
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual options activity: traders bought a large volume of put options (roughly a 42% increase vs. average), indicating elevated hedging or bearish bets that can amplify short-term downside volatility.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on IBM. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $361.00 price target on International Business Machines in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $304.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research 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 issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $330.07.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The company has a market capitalization of $245.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.69. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $300.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $283.89.

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

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director David N. Farr acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $304.00 per share, with a total value of $304,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 9,258 shares in the company, valued at $2,814,432. This represents a 12.11% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in International Business Machines by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 21,011 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,619,000 after buying an additional 2,323 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of International Business Machines by 10.6% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,938 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $571,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its stake in International Business Machines by 3.0% during the second quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 3,402 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,003,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 19.6% in the second quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 8,458 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,493,000 after purchasing an additional 1,389 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WealthPlan Investment Management LLC increased its stake in International Business Machines by 5.2% in the second quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 43,691 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $12,879,000 after purchasing an additional 2,165 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

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.