International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Trading Down 2.1% – Should You Sell?

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) was down 2.1% on Monday . The company traded as low as $251.57 and last traded at $253.38. Approximately 6,109,239 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 1% from the average daily volume of 6,151,647 shares. The stock had previously closed at $258.85.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on International Business Machines from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on International Business Machines from $312.00 to $317.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. UBS Group raised International Business Machines from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $236.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on International Business Machines from $304.00 to $247.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $320.87.

International Business Machines Stock Down 2.1%

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 stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $281.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $284.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $237.68 billion, a PE ratio of 22.72, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.73.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The technology company reported $4.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.33 by $0.19. International Business Machines had a net margin of 15.69% and a return on equity of 38.15%. The firm had revenue of $19.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.92 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that International Business Machines Corporation will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.68 per share. This represents a $6.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 10th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.27%.

Insider Activity at International Business Machines

In related news, Director David N. Farr acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $304.00 per share, for a total transaction of $304,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 9,258 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,814,432. This trade represents a 12.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Michael Miebach bought 434 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $233.33 per share, with a total value of $101,265.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,265.22. This trade represents a ? increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 1,484 shares of company stock valued at $417,157. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of International Business Machines

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mattson Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the 3rd quarter worth about $852,000. Vise Technologies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the second quarter valued at approximately $16,565,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in International Business Machines by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 95,051,475 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $28,019,274,000 after acquiring an additional 1,913,708 shares in the last quarter. Thames Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 2nd quarter worth $2,710,000. Finally, Waverton Investment Management Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 3.3% during the third quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd now owns 993,743 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $280,439,000 after purchasing an additional 32,072 shares in the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.