Searle & CO. Sells 1,338 Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Searle & CO. lowered its position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 5.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,103 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 1,338 shares during the period. International Business Machines accounts for 1.0% of Searle & CO.’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Searle & CO.’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $3,615,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of IBM. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new stake in International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 971.4% in the third quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 225 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. raised its position in International Business Machines by 67.9% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 225 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cordant Inc. lifted its holdings in International Business Machines by 753.3% during the 4th quarter. Cordant Inc. now owns 256 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Business Machines Price Performance

Shares of International Business Machines stock traded down $1.77 on Wednesday, reaching $164.43. The stock had a trading volume of 4,028,068 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,011,467. The business’s 50 day moving average is $186.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $170.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32. International Business Machines Co. has a 1 year low of $120.55 and a 1 year high of $199.18. The company has a market cap of $150.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.70.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The technology company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $14.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.53 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.21% and a net margin of 13.18%. International Business Machines’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.36 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 9.98 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. This is a boost from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.66. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.06%. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is presently 75.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on IBM. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. UBS Group increased their target price on International Business Machines from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on International Business Machines from $179.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Wedbush upped their price target on International Business Machines from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Evercore raised shares of International Business Machines from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $165.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Friday, January 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $184.08.

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.