Essex Financial Services Inc. Reduces Stake in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Essex Financial Services Inc. trimmed its position in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 4.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 34,179 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 1,600 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $7,514,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ellenbecker Investment Group raised its position in International Business Machines by 2.3% during the third quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group now owns 2,049 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $453,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network increased its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 3,123 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $687,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC lifted its stake in International Business Machines by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,217 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $269,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC grew its holdings in International Business Machines by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC now owns 1,346 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $298,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Forza Wealth Management LLC increased its position in International Business Machines by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,153 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,891,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

International Business Machines stock opened at $248.95 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $230.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.57 and a beta of 0.76. International Business Machines Co. has a 12 month low of $162.62 and a 12 month high of $265.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $229.76 and its 200-day moving average is $217.38.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 38.99%. Equities analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.75 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.68%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 104.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on IBM shares. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on International Business Machines from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $225.53.

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.