Nearwater Capital Markets Ltd Buys Shares of 150,000 International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Nearwater Capital Markets Ltd purchased a new position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 150,000 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,974,000. International Business Machines makes up approximately 0.9% of Nearwater Capital Markets Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in International Business Machines by 1.7% in 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 during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in International Business Machines by 2.1% during 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 purchasing an additional 427,499 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted 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 worth $2,634,577,000 after buying an additional 9,650,534 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 18.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,845,993 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,384,275,000 after buying an additional 1,704,209 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of International Business Machines by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,665,256 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,465,223,000 after acquiring an additional 126,547 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE IBM opened at $258.55 on Wednesday. International Business Machines Co. has a 52-week low of $163.53 and a 52-week high of $266.45. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $243.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $235.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. The firm has a market cap of $240.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.64.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $14.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.41 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.68 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be paid a $1.68 dividend. This represents a $6.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.60%. This is a positive change from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 115.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on IBM. Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Saturday. UBS Group reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $170.00 target price (up previously from $160.00) on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $237.00 to $233.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. KGI Securities set a $242.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded International Business Machines from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, International Business Machines has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $248.50.

Insider Transactions at International Business Machines

In other International Business Machines news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was 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 directly owns 45,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,387,221.07. This trade represents a 37.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.