International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) Shares Sold by Beech Hill Advisors Inc.

Beech Hill Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,731 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 175 shares during the quarter. International Business Machines comprises about 1.4% of Beech Hill Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Beech Hill Advisors Inc.’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $3,678,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 1,054.5% during the third quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 127 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new stake in International Business Machines in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Avondale Wealth Management grew its position in International Business Machines by 56.0% during the 4th quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 156 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group acquired a new position in International Business Machines during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the fourth quarter worth $40,000. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at International Business Machines

In related news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.20, for a total transaction of $774,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 25,390 shares in the company, valued at $5,463,928. This represents a 12.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on IBM. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. UBS Group boosted their price target on International Business Machines from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on International Business Machines from $205.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com downgraded International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $215.81.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

IBM traded down $1.32 on Thursday, reaching $218.71. The stock had a trading volume of 128,986 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,896,757. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $222.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $210.16. The company has a market cap of $202.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.71 and a beta of 0.74. International Business Machines Co. has a 12-month low of $162.62 and a 12-month high of $239.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced 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. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.52% and a net margin of 10.22%. The firm had revenue of $14.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.20 EPS. International Business Machines’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.16 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is 97.23%.

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.