Apriem Advisors Acquires 808 Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Apriem Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 56.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,237 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 808 shares during the quarter. Apriem Advisors’ holdings in International Business Machines were worth $492,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Pettinga Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the third quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in International Business Machines by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,610 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,007,000 after buying an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in International Business Machines by 132.5% during the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,301 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $730,000 after buying an additional 1,881 shares during the period. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 4.4% during the third quarter. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,339 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $296,000 after buying an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valmark Advisers Inc. boosted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 6.8% in the third quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 4,651 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,028,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares during the period. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Business Machines Trading Down 0.8 %

IBM opened at $255.62 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $237.20 and its 200-day moving average is $223.48. The company has a market cap of $236.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.88, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.76. International Business Machines Co. has a 1-year low of $162.62 and a 1-year high of $265.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 38.99%. Equities research analysts predict that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is 104.21%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on IBM. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on International Business Machines from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on International Business Machines from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $231.44.

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.