IBM soars to new highs

Article Excerpt

IBM, $183.66, is still a buy. The stock (New York symbol IBM; Shares outstanding: 913.1 million; Market cap: $171.6 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 3.6%) is near new highs after releasing its latest results. In the past few years, IBM has shifted its focus to its more-profitable cloud computing, consulting and mainframe businesses. It now gets over 75% of its revenue from software and consulting services. In the three months ended December 31, 2023, IBM’s revenue rose 4.6%, to $17.38 billion from $16.69 billion a year earlier. Per-share earnings rose 7.5%, to $3.87 from $3.60. That beat the consensus estimate of $3.78. The stock trades at 18.5 times IBM’s projected 2024 earnings of $9.91 a share. That’s a low p/e considering the company continues to earmark a high 11% of its revenue to research and is adding artificial intelligence features to its software products. The stock yields a solid 3.6%. IBM remains a buy. buy…