Northern Financial Advisors Inc Grows Position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Northern Financial Advisors Inc boosted its position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 14.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,319 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the period. International Business Machines accounts for 1.0% of Northern Financial Advisors Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Northern Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $1,197,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of IBM. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new stake in International Business Machines in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC grew its stake in International Business Machines by 971.4% in the third quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 225 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in International Business Machines by 67.9% during the third quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 225 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. Finally, Cordant Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 753.3% during the 4th quarter. Cordant Inc. now owns 256 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IBM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $179.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Wedbush lifted their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $181.29.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

NYSE IBM traded up $1.06 on Wednesday, hitting $169.44. 1,127,049 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,905,503. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $185.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $171.88. The company has a market capitalization of $155.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.18, a P/E/G ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.74. International Business Machines Co. has a 52-week low of $120.55 and a 52-week high of $199.18.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The technology company reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.09. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.21% and a net margin of 13.18%. The firm had revenue of $14.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.36 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that International Business Machines Co. will post 9.92 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.94%. This is an increase from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 75.20%.

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.