INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORP. $189 (New York symbol IBM, Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 1.1 billion; Market cap: $207.9 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.0; Dividend yield: 1.9%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.ibm.com) continues to add to its software expertise.
The company recently paid an undisclosed sum for U.K.-based Daeja Image Systems. This company’s products make it easier to view digital images in hundreds of different computer-file formats, without first installing the program that created the original image. Daeja’s products also help businesses mask sensitive information on computer images, and restrict access to certain files.
IBM is a buy.