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IBM (IBM) Stock Drops Despite Market Gains: Important Facts to Note

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The latest trading session saw IBM (IBM - Free Report) ending at $217.40, denoting a -1.07% adjustment from its last day's close. This change lagged the S&P 500's 0.16% gain on the day. Elsewhere, the Dow saw an upswing of 0.86%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq depreciated by 0.38%.

The technology and consulting company's stock has dropped by 4.8% in the past month, falling short of the Computer and Technology sector's loss of 1.29% and the S&P 500's loss of 2.2%.

Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of IBM in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's earnings report is set to go public on January 29, 2025. The company is expected to report EPS of $3.74, down 3.36% from the prior-year quarter. Alongside, our most recent consensus estimate is anticipating revenue of $17.6 billion, indicating a 1.25% upward movement from the same quarter last year.

Investors should also pay attention to any latest changes in analyst estimates for IBM. These latest adjustments often mirror the shifting dynamics of short-term business patterns. Therefore, positive revisions in estimates convey analysts' confidence in the company's business performance and profit potential.

Our research reveals that these estimate alterations are directly linked with the stock price performance in the near future. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.

The Zacks Rank system, spanning from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), boasts an impressive track record of outperformance, audited externally, with #1 ranked stocks yielding an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection remained stagnant. IBM presently features a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Valuation is also important, so investors should note that IBM has a Forward P/E ratio of 20.71 right now. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 17.77, which means IBM is trading at a premium to the group.

One should further note that IBM currently holds a PEG ratio of 4.71. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. IBM's industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.8 as of yesterday's close.

The Computer - Integrated Systems industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 32, which puts it in the top 13% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

To follow IBM in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.


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