Carret Asset Management LLC Cuts Stake in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Carret Asset Management LLC cut its stake in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 3.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,696 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 704 shares during the quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $4,110,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in IBM. Pettinga Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in International Business Machines in the third quarter valued at about $221,000. United Bank grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 53.3% during the third quarter. United Bank now owns 5,628 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,244,000 after acquiring an additional 1,956 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 12.4% during the third quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 6,205 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,372,000 after acquiring an additional 686 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 89.7% during the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 15,006 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,318,000 after acquiring an additional 7,095 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cable Hill Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 6.3% during the third quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC now owns 6,154 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,361,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,387,221.07. The trade was a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com upgraded International Business Machines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. 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. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on International Business Machines in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $320.00 price target for the company. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, International Business Machines presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $231.44.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

IBM opened at $245.67 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $243.72 and its 200-day moving average is $227.70. The stock has a market cap of $227.80 billion, a PE ratio of 38.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. International Business Machines Co. has a twelve month low of $162.62 and a twelve month high of $266.45.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share 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%. On average, analysts predict that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued 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 2.72%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.