Sandy Spring Bank Reduces Position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Sandy Spring Bank lessened its stake in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 10.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 9,739 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 1,116 shares during the quarter. Sandy Spring Bank’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $1,593,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Avion Wealth raised its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 964 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $158,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Financial Security Advisor Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Financial Security Advisor Inc. now owns 2,346 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $384,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Webster Bank N. A. boosted its position in International Business Machines by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 7,131 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,166,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Thrive Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Thrive Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,311 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,196,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kowal Investment Group LLC grew its holdings in International Business Machines by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Kowal Investment Group LLC now owns 2,004 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $328,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE IBM traded down $1.26 during trading on Thursday, reaching $184.78. The company had a trading volume of 460,138 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,862,461. The stock has a market cap of $169.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.87, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.70. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $188.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $167.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. International Business Machines Co. has a 12 month low of $120.55 and a 12 month high of $199.18.

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

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 9th. Investors of record on Friday, February 9th were issued a $1.66 dividend. This represents a $6.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 8th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on International Business Machines from $155.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $144.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on International Business Machines from $179.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on International Business Machines from $165.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 7th. Finally, Evercore raised shares of International Business Machines from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $165.00 to $200.00 in a report on Friday, January 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $176.85.

International Business Machines Company Profile

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.