International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) Shares Sold by King Luther Capital Management Corp

King Luther Capital Management Corp cut its holdings in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 3.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 24,053 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 975 shares during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $5,288,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth about $592,746,000. Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the third quarter worth about $573,306,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 2.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 55,671,883 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $12,307,940,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200,803 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 90.4% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,687,253 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $370,909,000 after purchasing an additional 800,930 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 23,311.1% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 697,182 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $153,262,000 after purchasing an additional 694,204 shares during the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on IBM. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on International Business Machines from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on International Business Machines from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America raised their price target on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com raised International Business Machines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Monday, January 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $231.44.

International Business Machines Price Performance

IBM stock opened at $249.72 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $243.21 and a 200-day moving average of $227.58. International Business Machines Co. has a 12-month low of $162.62 and a 12-month high of $266.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. The company has a market cap of $231.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.96, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.74.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities analysts expect that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.67%. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is 104.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of International Business Machines stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at $11,387,221.07. The trade was a 37.10 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

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.