International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Trading 0.7% Higher Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) shares rose 0.7% on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $184.16 and last traded at $183.41. Approximately 1,449,024 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 4,728,000 shares. The stock had previously closed at $182.19.

The technology company reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $14.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.53 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 39.55% and a net margin of 12.13%. International Business Machines’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.36 earnings per share.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 9th. Investors of record on Friday, February 9th were given a dividend of $1.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 8th. This represents a $6.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is 81.67%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on IBM. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target 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. UBS Group boosted their price target on International Business Machines from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday. StockNews.com lowered International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on International Business Machines from $179.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $177.23.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in IBM. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new position in International Business Machines during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. bought a new position in International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Stone House Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in International Business Machines by 971.4% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $168.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.63, a PEG ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $188.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $169.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.96.

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.