International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Trading Up 5.1% – What’s Next?

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM)’s share price traded up 5.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $273.14 and last traded at $271.3570. 9,577,396 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 31% from the average session volume of 7,305,542 shares. The stock had previously closed at $258.27.

Key International Business Machines News

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

• Positive Sentiment: IBM’s sub-1 nm chip breakthrough could improve AI chip performance and efficiency, supporting a stronger long-term hardware growth story. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush said the new chip architecture is a significant step in scaling semiconductors for growing AI workloads, which could boost investor confidence in IBM’s innovation pipeline. Proactive Investors article
• Neutral Sentiment: The market is also weighing IBM’s quantum and advanced computing strategy, but commercialization of the new chip technology is still years away, limiting near-term financial impact. Yahoo Finance article
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary remains cautious on IBM’s broader stock setup, with one recent note highlighting prior share underperformance versus the S&P 500 despite the new technology headline. Yahoo Finance article

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays began coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Monday, June 1st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $350.00 price target for the company. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $285.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Needham & Company LLC started coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Susquehanna began coverage on International Business Machines in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on International Business Machines in a report on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, International Business Machines presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $306.94.

International Business Machines Trading Up 5.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.80. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $253.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $267.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $255.04 billion, a PE ratio of 23.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.67.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The technology company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.81 by $0.10. International Business Machines had a net margin of 15.61% and a return on equity of 37.23%. The business had revenue of $15.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.60 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that International Business Machines Corporation will post 12.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a $1.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. This is an increase from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.68. This represents a $6.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is currently 59.77%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in IBM. WealthPoint Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 41.2% in the 1st quarter. WealthPoint Financial LLC now owns 1,207 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $292,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the period. Basecamp Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in International Business Machines by 2.8% in the first quarter. Basecamp Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,598 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $387,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC lifted its position in International Business Machines by 112.9% during the first quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC now owns 5,781 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,401,000 after buying an additional 3,066 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC lifted its position in International Business Machines by 64.6% during the first quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 4,628 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,122,000 after buying an additional 1,816 shares during the period. Finally, Steelhead Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the 1st quarter valued at $369,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.