Ascent Capital Management LLC Invests $230,000 in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Ascent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 1,045 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $230,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in IBM. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in International Business Machines in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Avondale Wealth Management lifted its holdings in International Business Machines by 56.0% in the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 156 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 134.3% during the 4th quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 157 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. 58.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

International Business Machines Stock Up 1.0 %

IBM stock opened at $248.15 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $230.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.71, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.04. International Business Machines Co. has a one year low of $162.62 and a one year high of $266.45. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $244.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $228.26.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 38.99%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is currently 104.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling at International Business Machines

In other news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total transaction 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 approximately $11,387,221.07. The trade was a 37.10 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.07% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on IBM. StockNews.com downgraded shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. UBS Group boosted their price target on International Business Machines from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on International Business Machines from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on International Business Machines from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on International Business Machines from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $231.44.

International Business Machines 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.