Avondale Wealth Management Increases Position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Avondale Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 56.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 156 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Avondale Wealth Management’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $34,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Legacy Private Trust Co. increased its position in shares of International Business Machines by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. now owns 3,070 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $675,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank grew its position in International Business Machines by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 15,722 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,456,000 after buying an additional 985 shares during the period. InvesTrust purchased a new stake in International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth about $7,851,000. Range Financial Group LLC raised its position in International Business Machines by 145.9% in the fourth quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 7,307 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,606,000 after acquiring an additional 4,336 shares during the period. Finally, Spartan Planning & Wealth Management purchased a new position in International Business Machines in the fourth quarter valued at about $371,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of International Business Machines stock traded down $3.62 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $219.56. The company had a trading volume of 446,689 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,599,268. The company has a 50 day moving average of $221.70 and a 200 day moving average of $208.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $203.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.96, a P/E/G ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 0.74. International Business Machines Co. has a 52-week low of $160.29 and a 52-week high of $239.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.06.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $14.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.08 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.52% and a net margin of 10.22%. The company’s revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.20 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were paid a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 12th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 97.23%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.20, for a total transaction of $774,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 25,390 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,463,928. This represents a 12.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on IBM shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on International Business Machines from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Bernstein Bank boosted their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $205.00 to $246.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, DZ Bank lowered International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $215.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $214.88.

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.