Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich Buys 5,194 Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its stake in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 33.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 20,578 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,194 shares during the quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $4,992,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Pettinga Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the 3rd quarter valued at about $221,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. Fiera Capital Corp increased its position in shares of International Business Machines by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 4,107 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $908,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. United Bank increased its position in shares of International Business Machines by 53.3% during the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 5,628 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,244,000 after purchasing an additional 1,956 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rovin Capital UT ADV purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the 3rd quarter valued at about $237,000. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

IBM has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $320.00 target price for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $231.44.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the 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 approximately $11,387,221.07. This represents a 37.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Trading Up 5.2 %

IBM stock opened at $261.67 on Monday. International Business Machines Co. has a 1-year low of $162.62 and a 1-year high of $265.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $242.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.82, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $241.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $226.62.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 9.60%. Research analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.55%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 104.21%.

About International Business Machines

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.