Hancock Whitney Corp Raises Position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Hancock Whitney Corp lifted its stake in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,672 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 153 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $1,247,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 91,839,252 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $20,189,023,000 after purchasing an additional 1,539,888 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in International Business Machines by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,909,646 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,589,145,000 after buying an additional 427,499 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 413.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 11,984,609 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,634,577,000 after acquiring an additional 9,650,534 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of International Business Machines by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,665,256 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,465,223,000 after acquiring an additional 126,547 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the fourth quarter worth about $1,236,176,000. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Business Machines Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE IBM opened at $232.50 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $245.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $233.91. The company has a market cap of $215.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.27, a P/E/G ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.67. International Business Machines Co. has a 12 month low of $162.62 and a 12 month high of $266.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $14.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.41 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 38.99%. Sell-side analysts predict that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

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 was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is 104.21%.

Insider Activity at International Business Machines

In other International Business Machines news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total value of $6,715,644.43. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at $11,387,221.07. This represents a 37.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on IBM shares. KGI Securities set a $242.00 price objective on International Business Machines and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded International Business Machines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $276.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $242.41.

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.