Poplar Forest Capital LLC Cuts Holdings in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Poplar Forest Capital LLC trimmed its stake in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 1.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 155,501 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 1,519 shares during the quarter. International Business Machines accounts for 4.7% of Poplar Forest Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest position. Poplar Forest Capital LLC’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $34,378,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in IBM. US Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in International Business Machines during the third quarter worth $205,000. Baugh & Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 25.3% in the third quarter. Baugh & Associates LLC now owns 1,527 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $338,000 after buying an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 0.9% in the third quarter. Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV now owns 40,695 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $8,997,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the last quarter. Advisor Resource Council bought a new position in International Business Machines in the third quarter valued at about $836,000. Finally, Blake Schutter Theil Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in International Business Machines during the third quarter worth about $268,000. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

IBM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on International Business Machines from $200.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com lowered International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. DZ Bank downgraded International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $215.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Bernstein Bank boosted their price target on International Business Machines from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $208.12.

International Business Machines Price Performance

Shares of International Business Machines stock opened at $213.58 on Thursday. International Business Machines Co. has a one year low of $145.28 and a one year high of $237.37. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $217.49 and its 200 day moving average is $191.86. The stock has a market cap of $197.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.09, a P/E/G ratio of 4.64 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.06.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $14.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.08 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.52% and a net margin of 10.22%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.20 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.11 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be given a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.13%. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is 97.23%.

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.