Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC Increases Holdings in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 13,210 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $2,900,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Centaurus Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of International Business Machines by 128.6% during the second quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 8,558 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,480,000 after acquiring an additional 4,814 shares in the last quarter. Alternative Investment Advisors LLC. purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the second quarter worth $1,790,000. Sage Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 3.3% during the second quarter. Sage Advisors LLC now owns 4,629 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $801,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. boosted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 22.4% during the third quarter. Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. now owns 50,609 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $11,189,000 after buying an additional 9,268 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Doliver Advisors LP bought a new stake in International Business Machines in the 3rd quarter worth about $208,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:IBM opened at $258.22 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.01. International Business Machines Co. has a 1-year low of $162.62 and a 1-year high of $261.80. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $225.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $213.55. The company has a market capitalization of $238.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.28, a P/E/G ratio of 4.25 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 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.37% and a net margin of 9.60%. Research analysts expect that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is 104.21%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.20, for a total value of $774,720.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 25,390 shares in the company, valued at $5,463,928. The trade was a 12.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IBM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Monday. 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 research note on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on International Business Machines from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $225.53.

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.