International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Shares Down 1.7% After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) fell 1.7% during trading on Friday after BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on the stock from $350.00 to $290.00. BMO Capital Markets currently has a market perform rating on the stock. International Business Machines traded as low as $241.77 and last traded at $246.1160. 11,271,267 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 85% from the average session volume of 6,078,928 shares. The stock had previously closed at $250.37.

IBM has been the subject of several other research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $361.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. DZ Bank upgraded International Business Machines to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Erste Group Bank downgraded International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Dbs Bank upgraded International Business Machines from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 11th. One equities 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $314.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at International Business Machines

In related news, Director David N. Farr purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $304.00 per share, with a total value of $304,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 9,258 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,814,432. This represents a 12.11% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Michael Miebach acquired 434 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were bought at an average price of $233.33 per share, with a total value of $101,265.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,265.22. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 1,484 shares of company stock valued at $417,157. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

International Business Machines News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Completed Confluent acquisition bolsters IBM’s AI and hybrid-cloud stack by adding real-time data streaming to feed AI models and automation—supports longer-term revenue synergies and positioning in enterprise AI. IBM Confluent Deal Puts Real Time Data At Core Of AI Story
• Positive Sentiment: Retail and TV-commentator attention has boosted short-term interest; previous endorsements (e.g., Jim Cramer mentions) continue to draw flows and chatter. International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) Shares Higher After Jim Cramer Advised In August To Step In Due To Fundamentals
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks notes IBM as a trending/search interest stock — increased attention can amplify moves but does not by itself change fundamentals. International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) Is a Trending Stock: Facts to Know Before Betting on It
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan lowered its price target after the Confluent deal (from $317 to $283) and kept a Neutral rating—signal that some analysts see limited near-term upside or acquisition integration risk. JPMorgan Lowers IBM Target after Confluent Deal, Sees Balanced Risk/Reward
• Negative Sentiment: BMO cut its target from $350 to $290 (now Market Perform), and other outlets report analyst downgrades and pessimistic forecasts—these re-ratings increase selling pressure and reduce near-term upside expectations. BMO Lowers IBM Target
• Negative Sentiment: Unusually large options activity: traders bought a surge of put contracts (reported 88,456 puts), signaling significant hedging or bearish speculative bets that can amplify downside volatility. (Options flow reported 3/19)
• Negative Sentiment: Several recent articles highlight mixed/declining short-term momentum and Wall Street reassessment amid diverging analyst views—reinforces the narrative of uncertainty around near-term growth and valuation. Wall Street Reassesses IBM’s Trajectory Amid Diverging Analyst Views

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IBM. Family CFO Inc bought a new position in International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Basepoint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in International Business Machines during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. bought a new stake in International Business Machines during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $230.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.73. 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 company has a 50-day moving average price of $271.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $284.50.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The technology company reported $4.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.33 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $19.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.23 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.15% and a net margin of 15.69%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.92 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that International Business Machines Corporation will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th were 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 was Tuesday, February 10th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.27%.

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.