Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Raises Holdings in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 403,350 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 3,354 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $88,668,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Avondale Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 56.0% in the 4th quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 156 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 134.3% during the 4th quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 157 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

NYSE:IBM opened at $252.54 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $245.88 and its 200-day moving average is $229.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.04. International Business Machines Co. has a 52-week low of $162.62 and a 52-week high of $266.45. The company has a market cap of $234.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.40, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.74.

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

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.65%. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is 104.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other International Business Machines news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of International Business Machines stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total transaction of $6,715,644.43. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. The trade was a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on IBM. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on International Business Machines from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of International Business Machines from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $231.44.

International Business Machines 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.