Advocate Group LLC Decreases Stake in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Advocate Group LLC cut its stake in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 12.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 57,139 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 8,464 shares during the period. International Business Machines accounts for approximately 2.4% of Advocate Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Advocate Group LLC’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $12,561,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ellenbecker Investment Group grew its position in International Business Machines by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group now owns 2,049 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $453,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,217 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $269,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC now owns 1,346 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $298,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,153 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,891,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sollinda Capital Management LLC raised its stake in International Business Machines by 3.7% in the third quarter. Sollinda Capital Management LLC now owns 1,360 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $301,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.20, for a total value of $774,720.00. Following the transaction, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.07% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on IBM. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on International Business Machines from $200.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Bernstein Bank raised their price objective on International Business Machines from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. BMO Capital Markets raised 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. UBS Group lifted their price target on International Business Machines from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on International Business Machines from $208.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have assigned 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 $220.73.

International Business Machines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE IBM opened at $224.69 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $224.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $212.32. 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 $239.35. The company has a market cap of $207.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.78 and a beta of 0.74.

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, topping 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 company had revenue of $14.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.20 EPS. International Business Machines’s revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.97%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.23%.

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.