RFP Financial Group LLC Makes New Investment in International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM)

RFP Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 838 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $208,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of IBM. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 413.5% in 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 purchasing an additional 9,650,534 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,236,176,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 29,564.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,399,790 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $10,940,520,000 after purchasing an additional 4,384,958 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $592,746,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 18.6% in 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 purchasing an additional 1,704,209 shares during the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

NYSE:IBM opened at $280.67 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $260.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.95 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $257.71 and its 200-day moving average is $245.55. International Business Machines Corporation has a 1-year low of $170.41 and a 1-year high of $286.91.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $14.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.41 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 37.43% and a net margin of 8.71%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.68 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Corporation will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were paid a $1.68 dividend. This is a positive change from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. This represents a $6.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.39%. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is 115.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

IBM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $237.00 to $233.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $170.00 price objective (up previously from $160.00) on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Bank of America increased their price objective on International Business Machines from $290.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Wedbush increased their price objective on International Business Machines from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised International Business Machines from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $253.75.

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.