IBM - International Business Machines Corporation
| Previous Close | 137.98 |
| Open | 136.54 |
| Bid | 138.13 x 800 |
| Ask | 138.30 x 900 |
| Day's Range | 136.16 - 138.33 |
| 52 Week Range | 121.54 - 152.95 |
| Volume | 5,623,336 |
| Avg. Volume | 3,427,504 |
| Market Cap | 122.492B |
| Beta (5Y Monthly) | 1.34 |
| PE Ratio (TTM) | 16.07 |
| EPS (TTM) | 8.60 |
| Earnings Date | Jan 20, 2020 |
| Forward Dividend & Yield | 6.48 (4.70%) |
| Ex-Dividend Date | Nov 05, 2019 |
| 1y Target Est | 147.68 |
- Yahoo Finance
Earnings, Davos — What to know in the week ahead
It is a shortened trading week and investors will be focused on earnings and the World Economic Forum taking place in Davos, Switzerland.
- Benzinga
Bulls And Bears Of The Week: IBM, Microsoft, Tesla And More
Benzinga has examined the prospects for many investor favorite stocks over the past week. Bullish calls included a software leader and a discount airline. Bearish calls included an electric vehicle giant ...
- Benzinga
Morgan Stanley Downgrades IBM, Says Revenue Growth Slowing
International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM ) is now less likely to generate long-term revenue growth without a meaningful shift in its portfolio, according to Morgan Stanley. The IBM Analyst ...
- Barrons.com
IBM Stock Gets Downgraded By Morgan Stanley. Here’s Why.
Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty is more cautious about (IBM)’s ability to generate sales growth in its software and services businesses. On Friday, Huberty lowered her rating for IBM shares to Equal-weight from Overweight. IBM shares were down 0.5% to $137.25 on Friday.
- InvestorPlace
7 Earnings Reports to Watch Next Week
Editor's note: InvestorPlace's Earnings Reports to Watch is updated weekly. Please check back next week for our latest earnings picks.Earnings season begins next week. And it's obviously an important stretch for the market. Broad indices are trading at new all-time highs on Thursday, which suggests expectations are reasonably elevated as the earnings calendar picks up.Meanwhile, many companies that report on a calendar-year basis will deliver not only fourth-quarter results, but guidance for 2020. In a market already pricing in a strong year, disappointing outlooks would undercut investor confidence.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading TipsSo earnings reports next week will be closely watched, ahead of an bigger slate the following week. And it's difficult to predict exactly how those reports will be received. After all, the last reasonably significant decline in U.S. stocks began at the start of earnings season in late July. Three months later, third-quarter earnings reports catalyzed the year-end rally.This stretch of the earnings calendar thus seems like a rubber match. And it begins with an interesting group of earnings reports next week across sectors and across the value/growth continuum.The airline sector, which underpins my pick for the Best ETF of 2020, sees reports from the likes of American Airlines (NYSE:AAL), Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) and United Airlines (NYSE:UAL) after a strong report from Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) this week.That key sector should highlight consumer confidence, as should apparel play VF Corporation (NYSE:VFC). Texas Instruments (NASDAQ:TXN) kicks off earnings from the currently hot semiconductor space. * 10 Monthly Dividend Stocks to Buy to Pay the Bills But these seven earnings reports look like the most important next week. They include some big names in some important sectors, whose results could signal how the rest of earnings season will play out. Earnings Reports to Watch: International Business Machines (IBM)Source: Laborant / Shutterstock.com Earnings Report Date: Tuesday, January 21, after market closeFor International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM), Q4 earnings likely will come down to guidance and Red Hat. IBM stock has been rangebound for over four years now, and still trades about one-third below 2013 highs. A lack of growth has been the key reason why.The Red Hat acquisition is supposed to change that, and make IBM a more legitimate player in the cloud. It's still early in the integration of that deal, which only closed in July, but investors will be looking to the 2020 outlook for a key data point in terms of early performance.The concern ahead of Tuesday's release is that the need for growth is nothing new. Third-quarter results in October were similarly important, yet IBM's revenue disappointed and IBM stock fell on the release.As a result, IBM firmly is a "show me" story at this point. It will take both a strong quarter and a positive outlook to change that, and drive IBM stock out of its rangebound ways. Netflix (NFLX)Source: vesperstock / Shutterstock.com Earnings Report Date: Tuesday, January 21, after market closeFourth quarter earnings from Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) likely will have the broadest impact of any release next week.To be sure, Netflix's numbers obviously will matter to NFLX stock itself. Options markets at the moment are pricing in a nearly 8% move by the end of next week. Netflix's subscriber numbers have been soft on occasion, most notably in the second quarter and the figure will be closely watched. With competition ramping, Netflix likely has even less room for error than it has in the past.But that competition means the results will matter to other names as well. The "streaming wars" are ramping up. Disney (NYSE:DIS) already has disclosed strong subscriber numbers for its Disney+ service. AT&T (NYSE:T) and others have their own services on the way. Tuesday's release could show whether Netflix has an insurmountable lead -- or whether its rivals have a legitimate opportunity to take market share. * 10 Cheap Stocks to Buy Under $10 Even outside the sector, the report will matter, given that NFLX is one of the largest and most well-covered stocks in the market. Does NFLX catch a bid after a strong quarter? Or are we, as some fear, at a point where valuations are simply too stretched, particularly among high-flyers? Investors should watch post-earnings trading in NFLX closely, because it could signal the broader sentiment towards valuation and growth at this point in the bull market. Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)Source: Alexander Tolstykh / Shutterstock.com Earnings Report Date: Wednesday, January 22, before market openFor Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), the goal on Wednesday morning is pretty simple: no surprises. JNJ stock has rallied nicely in recent weeks, as the company seems to have put its myriad legal and regulatory issues in the rear-view mirror, at least for now.To keep the rally going, J&J likely needs to provide an earnings beat, which shouldn't be terribly difficult: The company has topped Street expectations on both lines for nine consecutive quarters. And it needs to avoid any new disclosures about additional liabilities or earnings accruals relative to its legal exposure.That combination should be enough. JNJ stock still is reasonably cheap, at just 16x forward earnings. A 2.6% dividend yield is attractive in an environment where the 10-year Treasury offers just 1.8%. Getting back toward normal has been unquestionably good news for JNJ stock; now, the company just needs to keep it that way. Abbott Laboratories (ABT)Source: Shutterstock Earnings Report Date: Wednesday, January 22, before market openAbbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) is an interesting name to watch next week. Despite the market rally, ABT stock has been surprisingly stuck, with resistance holding just below $90 going back to this summer. Heading into Wednesday morning's release, shares are nearing that resistance again, setting up an interesting report.A solid gain after earnings could set up a technical breakout. Any weakness, however, and resistance gets even firmer. ABT stock obviously is unlikely to soar or plunge following the report, but post-earnings trading in the stock likely sets its near-term direction. * 7 5G Stocks to Connect Your Portfolio To But as with Netflix, here too the reaction to earnings will be interesting. The valuations assigned growth stocks like NFLX have garnered much of the headlines. But at 24x forward earnings, ABT is one of many "safe" stocks receiving historically high multiples. Are investors willing to pay those multiples -- or something even higher -- for anything less than a perfect quarter? Procter & Gamble (PG)Source: Jonathan Weiss / Shutterstock.com Earnings Report Date: Thursday, January 23, before market openThat same question applies to consumer giant Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG). To be sure, the huge rally in PG stock, which has risen 80% in less than two years, makes some sense. A long-running turnaround effort finally has gained traction and driven earnings growth.But at the same 24x forward multiple as ABT, PG stock has a historically high valuation. The last time shares garnered anything close to 24x was in the early to mid-2000's, when P&G's international opportunity was far newer and far larger.As a result, P&G seemingly has little room for error on Thursday morning. And its trading could read across to peers like Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL), as well as the likes of Abbott Labs and even Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT). In this bull market, investors have steadily paid higher and higher prices not just for growth, but for quality. It's fair to wonder if and when that ends. Comcast (CMCSA)Source: Todd A. Merport / Shutterstock.com Earnings Report Date: Thursday, January 23, before market openThe question for Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) at the moment is: can it catch up? That's true for CMCSA stock, which has mostly lagged both the broader markets and particularly peer Charter Communications (NASDAQ:CHTR). And it's true for the company's Peacock streaming service, which launches in April.As far as CMCSA stock goes, the key figure to watch might be video subscribers. "Cord-cutting" clearly accelerated in 2019. Faster erosion of that subscriber base won't impact just Comcast stock, but suppliers like AMC Networks (NASDAQ:AMCX) and Discovery Communications (NASDAQ:DISCA).The other key area to watch will be on the content side. NBCUniversal, whose intellectual property underpins Peacock, too is struggling with cord-cutting. Valuations assigned the likes of AMCX and DISCA show that investors are pricing in steady declines in revenue and profits for media companies. * 7 Small-Cap Stocks That Are Not Worth a Second Glance A poor report from Comcast would amplify cord-cutting concerns for both the distribution and content businesses, particularly if Netflix's U.S. subscriber numbers impress. With Comcast stock near all-time highs, the streaming launch still three months away, and Netflix earnings on Tuesday, it's easy to see a bearish narrative emerging next week. Comcast doesn't need a perfect quarter, but it does need to avoid the perfect storm. Intel (INTC)Source: Kate Krav-Rude / Shutterstock.com Earnings Report Date: Thursday, January 23, after market closeTexas Instruments does have the first of the chip sector's earnings reports next week with its Q4 release on Wednesday afternoon. But Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) has the most important. Like many semiconductor stocks, INTC has rallied nicely in recent months. And investors may discount TXN earnings to some extent, given that company's soft guidance in October proved to be an outlier in the industry.Intel's report on Thursday is likely to move the sector. The question is in which direction. Again, many chip plays have gained, with higher-growth names like Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) and Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) soaring. The narrative among investors clearly has returned to a focus on future drivers like 5G, automotive and cloud over near-term cyclical worries.The mission for Intel is to keep that narrative intact. Weak demand among cloud providers hit the sector early last year, and that end market no doubt will be the point of focus on Intel's Q4 conference call. First quarter guidance will be key as well.As with many companies in this bull market, it's probably enough for Intel to simply not give investors a reason to sell. If the company does, however, that selling pressure likely will spread to the rest of its industry, at least in regular trading on Friday.As of this writing, Vince Martin did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * The 10 Worst Dividend Stocks of the Decade * 7 Game-Changing Tech Stocks to Buy Now * 5 Chinese Stocks to Buy for the Big 2020 Rebound The post 7 Earnings Reports to Watch Next Week appeared first on InvestorPlace.
- MarketWatch
IBM stock falls as Morgan Stanley downgrades ahead of earnings
Shares of International Business Machines Corp. are off 0.8% in Friday morning trading after Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty downgraded the stock to equal weight from overweight. She wrote that Morgan Stanley's recent survey of chief information officers "provides new evidence of core IBM revenue declines, particularly in software and services." The downgrade comes as IBM is due to report fourth-quarter earnings Tuesday afternoon. Huberty expects the company to give a full-year earnings outlook on its conference call, and her earnings-per-share estimate of $12.80 for calendar 2020 is below the $13.28 FactSet consensus and would be flat with what analysts expect for calendar 2019. IBM shares have gained about 2% over the past three months, as the S&P 500 has added 11%.
- Reuters
US STOCKS-Wall Street set for new highs on strong data, earnings
U.S. stock indexes were set to scale fresh record highs on Friday, on optimism over corporate earnings, fresh economic data and indications of resilience in a Chinese economy battered by a prolonged trade war with the United States. The three main stock indexes closed at record highs on Thursday, with the S&P 500 surging past the 3,300-mark for the first time, also boosted by a rally in technology stocks and strong U.S. retail sales data.
- InvestorPlace
VMware Stock Needs a Successful Pivot in 2020
Many investors were looking at 2020 as being the start of something big for VMware (NYSE:VMW). After a year spent on acquisitions, the company appears ready to start making its transition to a hybrid cloud provider.Source: Sundry Photography / Shutterstock.com That would be welcome news to investors who are watching a stock that has dropped 25% from its 52-week high set in May 2019. But so far, 2020 has brought a lack of clear direction. Instead of participating in the market melt up like other tech stocks, VMW shares are down about 5% since the start of the year. And much to the chagrin of some traders, the stock is struggling to push above a support level at $150. Acquire or DieAs the cloud revolution was taking place, VMware quickly realized that its position as an old-guard enterprise company was under attack. Companies are moving away from traditional virtualization and looking to containers to hold their apps, configurations and settings.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading TipsThis transition played out in the price of VMW stock. While companies like Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) were having a banner year, VMW stock had a gain of just over 10%. Smartly, VMware went on a buying spree. * 10 Cheap Stocks to Buy Under $10 One of the key phrases in the hybrid cloud model being adopted by VMware is "open source technology." IBM (NYSE:IBM) became the undisputed leader in open source container applications with its expensive $34 billion purchase of Red Hat in 2019. This gave IBM access to Red Hat's OpenShift Kubernetes platform. VMware's response is a $2.7 billion purchase of Pivotal Software. This is a move that VMware CEO Patrick Gelsinger said gives the company better assets for far less cost.The acquisition of Pivotal is at the core of VMware's own Kubernetes strategy called VMware Tanzu. This portfolio of products and services will give customers the option to build and deploy applications on Kubernetes using different development platforms.But that wasn't the extent of VMware's acquisitions. The company also acquired Bitnami with its packaged application catalog and Heptio for deep Kubernetes expertise. All this in addition to VMware's $2.1 purchase of Carbon Black. VMware Has to DeliverTo be fair, VMware had to make these acquisitions. And compared to IBM's purchase of Red Hat, it may turn out to be a savvy and fiscally sound investment.But now, VMware has to deliver. To that end, VMware's goal is to get its existing 600,000 vSphere customer base to adopt container technology in addition to VMware's vSphere virtualization platform. The initiative, called Project Pacific, unites vSphere with Kubernetes. Analysts and Investment Firms Believe in the Business ModelOf the 24 analysts that have given a rating on VMware, 15 have given a buy rating while eight others gave it a hold. The global investment firm Oppenheimer recently reiterated its "outperform" rating on VMware and maintained its price target of $200. "We see a compelling risk/reward scenario as we don't believe recent strategic initiatives and model evolution has been factored into shares," said Oppenheimer in a note to investors.Analysts are projecting an earnings per share for 2020 and 2021 that suggests modest, but certainly not spectacular, profitability growth. Some of that may be that analysts are not yet factoring in the potential growth from the Pivotal acquisition. It's Too Early to Tell What 2020 Holds for VMW StockAlthough VMW stock is off to a rough start, it may represent a buying opportunity. My InvestorPlace colleague, Vince Martin, made a case that a price just below $150 might be an attractive buying point for VMware. Martin points out the company's large free cash flow as a benefit regardless of how successfully it can make the pivot in its cloud strategy.However, that alone will not be enough to excite investors. For that to happen, the company will have to show growth. And that is something that won't be clear for a couple of quarters. Which means the stock will probably be stuck in neutral. And as Will Healy wrote, VMware is majority owned by Dell. Now that Dell shares are trading again, the company may decide to buy VMware outright or spin off the company.Risk-tolerant investors may see more reasons to jump in. But right now, I see better, alternative opportunities in this space.As of this writing, Chris Markoch did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 10 Cheap Stocks to Buy Under $10 * 5 Retail Stocks Placer.ai Thinks Can Win Big in 2020 * 6 Cheap Stocks to Buy Under $7 The post VMware Stock Needs a Successful Pivot in 2020 appeared first on InvestorPlace.
- Reuters
REFILE-US STOCKS-China data boosts Wall Street futures to new record highs
U.S. stock index futures hit new all-time highs on Friday, with investor optimism bolstered by an upbeat set of U.S. corporate earnings reports and indications of resilience in the Chinese economy. Optimism over a Phase 1 U.S.-China trade deal signed on Wednesday and recent upbeat data have raised hopes that the global economy may be picking up.
- InvestorPlace
3 Big Stock Charts for Friday: IBM, Abbott Labs, and FuelCell Energy
Earnings season looms next year at a key point for the market. U.S. stocks are at all-time highs, and need a strong batch of earnings reports to keep the momentum going.Source: Shutterstock That's particularly true for the three stocks featured in Friday's big stock charts. Technically, all three names have clear potential for big moves in the next few weeks. In each case, an important upcoming earnings report represents a catalyst. * 10 Cheap Stocks to Buy Under $10 To be sure, it's not 100% clear in which direction these stocks will head. But for investors willing to firmly pick a side, or traders looking for potential volatility, these big stock charts should be watched closely in the coming weeks.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips International Business Machines (IBM)Source: Provided by Finviz IBM (NYSE:IBM) is trying to rally ahead of its fourth quarter earnings report on Tuesday afternoon. But while the first of Friday's big stock charts suggests some cause for optimism, recent history suggests reason for caution: * Technically, IBM stock is at least set up for a rally. Shares have exited a narrowing wedge to the upside, and cleared near-term moving averages in the process. The 200-day moving average has provided resistance that IBM stock will need to move through, but a strong fourth quarter report could provide the required boost. * A strong report is necessary. IBM's acquisition of Red Hat closed in July, and was supposed to allow IBM to finally get back to growth. The company infamously went 22 consecutive quarters without generating year-over-year revenue growth, and returned to declines after breaking the streak in 2017. As a result, IBM stock has gained just 4.7% total over the past decade, while the S&P 500 has nearly tripled. * And so this is an important reason on multiple fronts. The 2020 outlook, which includes a full year of Red Hat, needs to be strong enough to inspire confidence. The chart both reflects and amplifies the fundamental importance of the quarter: trading in IBM stock next week seems likely to set its direction for some time to come. There's a path to challenge July highs around $150 with a beat, and a potential reversal to $125 if IBM disappoints once again. Abbott Laboratories (ABT)Source: Provided by Finviz Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) has posted much more impressive multi-year performance: shares in fact have more than doubled since late 2016. But resistance has been stiff of late, and Abbott Labs likely needs a strong fourth quarter report on Wednesday morning to break out: * ABT stock certainly is gearing up for another run, with strong performance in recent sessions on decent volume. An uptrend has held since early October and investors quickly bought a small, brief dip last week. For now, anyway, shares certainly are headed in the right direction. * Here, too, it likely takes a strong fourth quarter report for the stock to break out. Abbott will not only detail Q4 results next week, but will give guidance for 2020. Wall Street projects about 11% growth in earnings per share this year, a reasonably high bar to clear. It's too simplistic to argue that ABT will rise if guidance exceeds expectations and falls if it doesn't -- but it doesn't seem too far off. At the least, the second of our big stock charts suggests it will be exceedingly difficult to break out if Abbott can't deliver an above-consensus outlook. * Some help from the market would be useful as well. Abbott unquestionably is a wonderful company, recently increasing its dividend for the 48th consecutive year. But like most wonderful companies in this market, valuation is a question mark: the 24x forward multiple is historically high. If Abbott can deliver a big report next week, that multiple will be less of an issue. If it simply matches expectations, it will need investors to keep paying up for quality. FuelCell Energy (FCEL)Source: Provided by Finviz FuelCell Energy (NASDAQ:FCEL) has been one of the market's best stocks in the past seven months, gaining over 1,500% from late June lows. And the third of Friday's big stock charts suggests the rally could have another leg: * Technically, FCEL stock has established a classic flag formation, with the parabolic gain the "flagpole" and the sideways trading since the flag. Those patterns are continuation patterns, which often lead to another bounce higher after the stock consolidates. A recent "golden cross," in which the 50-day moving average moves above the 200-day, adds to the bullishness shown on the chart. * Click to Enlarge Source: Provided by Finviz That said, taking the broader view, the risks become apparent simply from the chart. Amazingly, FCEL stock is down 65.5% over the past year even after the enormous rally of late. It has declined 98.6% in the last five years. FuelCell Energy has delivered optimism before, but it's always disappointed. * And so FuelCell's fourth quarter report, also on Wednesday, looks exceedingly important. FCEL stock is trying to follow the path of fellow (if different) fuel cell play Plug Power (NASDAQ:PLUG), which has re-inspired investor confidence over the last year. A new agreement with Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) and a game-changing loan agreement seem to have de-risked the story. If FuelCell Energy can deliver a positive quarter and a strong outlook next week, the rally can and should continue.As of this writing, Vince Martin has no positions in any securities mentioned. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 10 Cheap Stocks to Buy Under $10 * 5 Retail Stocks Placer.ai Thinks Can Win Big in 2020 * 6 Cheap Stocks to Buy Under $7 The post 3 Big Stock Charts for Friday: IBM, Abbott Labs, and FuelCell Energy appeared first on InvestorPlace.
- Bloomberg
Toshiba Touts Algorithm That’s Faster Than a Supercomputer
(Bloomberg) -- Follow Bloomberg on Telegram for all the investment news and analysis you need.It’s a tantalizing prospect for traders whose success often hinges on microseconds: a desktop PC algorithm that crunches market data faster than today’s most advanced supercomputers.Japan’s Toshiba Corp. says it has the technology to make such rapid-fire calculations a reality -- not quite quantum computing, but perhaps the next best thing. The claim is being met with a mix of intrigue and skepticism at financial firms in Tokyo and around the world.Toshiba’s “Simulated Bifurcation Algorithm” is designed to harness the principles behind quantum computers without requiring the use of such machines, which currently have limited applications and can cost millions of dollars to build and keep near absolute zero temperature. Toshiba says its technology, which may also have uses outside finance, runs on PCs made from off-the-shelf components.“You can just plug it into a server and run it at room temperature,” Kosuke Tatsumura, a senior research scientist at Toshiba’s Computer & Network Systems Laboratory, said in an interview. The Tokyo-based conglomerate, while best known for its consumer electronics and nuclear reactors, has long conducted research into advanced technologies.Toshiba has said it needs a partner to adopt the algorithm for real-world use, and financial firms have taken notice as they grapple for an edge in markets increasingly dominated by machines. Banks, brokerages and asset managers have all been experimenting with quantum computing, although viable applications are generally considered to be some time away.Why Quantum Computers Will Be Super Awesome, Someday: QuickTakeArbitrage OpportunitiesToshiba said its system is capable of calculating arbitrage opportunities for currencies in microseconds. The company has hired financial professionals to work on the project and aims to complete a real-world trial by March 2021.“Finance is the most familiar application,” Toshiba Chief Executive Officer Nobuaki Kurumatani said in an interview. “But there are so many uses. This is a technology with real potential.”Toshiba’s algorithm seems to outperform rival approaches on mathematical benchmarks, but how it will perform on real-world problems is anyone’s guess. Access to the company’s backtesting in currency trading and portfolio optimization isn’t publicly available and adopting the technology to a new problem would likely require rebuilding the algorithm from scratch.“There is a lot of talk about applications of quantum computing in finance, but it’s not very clear where it would be all that necessary,” said Takanobu Mizuta, a fund manager and senior researcher at Sparx Group Co. Optimizing a portfolio is not something that needs to be done in microseconds and calculations involved in high-frequency trading, where speed counts, are not very complicated, Mizuta said.Toshiba may choose to use the algorithm for areas outside finance. Other applications could include things like plotting complex shipping and logistics routes and developing new drugs with molecular precision, according to the company.First IdeaThe idea first arose in 2015, when senior research scientist Hayato Goto was exploring how the qualities of some complex systems can suddenly change with additional input, a phenomenon he describes as bifurcation. But it took him two years, he said, to realize the discovery could be used to craft algorithms that can efficiently sift through a huge number of possibilities -- like a quantum computer without the onerous requirements to run one.Goto partnered with Tatsumura, whose semiconductor expertise was crucial in making the calculations work on multiple processors in parallel.“We will see some ideas for specific applications of quantum computing coming out over the next five years,” said Masayuki Ohzeki, an associate professor at Tohoku University whose research focuses on the technology. “But real implementation will depend on when there is a good match between improvement in performance and techniques that simplify the calculations.”Toshiba revealed its Simulated Bifurcation Algorithm in April, initially garnering little attention outside the scientific community. In October, the company announced that its model had identified potential arbitrage opportunities in currency trading in just 30 microseconds -- fast enough, it claimed, to give it a 90% chance of making profitable trades. That triggered inquiries from financial institutions in Japan and abroad, Toshiba said.Quantum ComputingInvestment banks are already eyeing quantum computing as an opportunity and a threat. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has been building an in-house research team and late last year joined forces with startup WC Ware to speed up the search for a “quantum advantage.” Japan’s Nomura Holdings Inc. has partnered with Ohzeki’s lab at Tohoku University to explore applications in asset management using a machine made by Canada’s D-Wave Systems Inc.“Right now, what you can do with it is still hypothetical,” said Kazuyuki Takeda, a general manager at Mizuho-DL Financial Technology Co., a research arm of one of Japan’s biggest financial groups. “It will take quite a bit of time before we have practical uses of quantum computing. At least 10 years or so.”Alphabet Inc.’s Google claimed in October that its quantum computer -- built on a custom processor with bespoke cryogenic cooling -- could perform a task in 200 seconds that would take today’s fastest supercomputer 10,000 years. Researchers at IBM have countered, saying that their supercomputer can match Google’s Sycamore processor “in a matter of days.” But that cluster of machines occupies an area the size of two basketball courts inside the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. In either case, the cost of quantum-like computational capability appears to still be prohibitively high for most applications.In the meantime, Toshiba is hoping it will succeed in commercializing its new algorithms -- whether in finance or elsewhere -- by delivering a computational edge with existing technology.“We give ourselves about a one-year lead for the stuff that we release publicly,” Goto said. “The more cutting-edge knowledge we have internally gives us confidence that we won’t be easily caught up with.”(Updates with expert comment and latest developments in quantum computing.)\--With assistance from Michael Patterson.To contact the reporters on this story: Pavel Alpeyev in Tokyo at palpeyev@bloomberg.net;Grace Huang in Tokyo at xhuang66@bloomberg.net;Shoko Oda in Tokyo at soda13@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Edwin Chan at echan273@bloomberg.net, Vlad Savov, Tom RedmondFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- Zacks
Will Dow ETFs Continue to Surge as Q4 Earnings Unfold?
With most blue-chip companies' earnings scheduled over the coming weeks and sentiments being mixed, investors should closely monitor the movement of the Dow ETF.
- Investopedia
Can IBM Stock Enter New Uptrend?
Market players remain skeptical about IBM's long-term outlook ahead of next week's earnings report.
- Zacks
IBM Maintains Patent Dominance, MSFT, AMZN & AAPL Catch Up
IBM, Samsung, Microsoft, Amazon, Apple and Huawei win record patents, raising possibilities of breakthroughs in the tech arena.
- Zacks
Broadridge (BR) and IBM Tie Up on Hybrid Cloud Capabilities
The move is part of Broadridge's (BR) shift to a hybrid cloud model and efforts to provide next-generation SaaS solutions.
- MarketWatch
IBM earnings: Outlook for 2020 amid soft software market is key
Soft enterprise spending could set up a big challenge for International Business Machines Inc. in 2020, so how Big Blue spins its forecast for the year will carry a lot of weight when the company reports earnings.
- MarketWatch
UnitedHealth, Pfizer share gains lead Dow's 150-point climb
DOW UPDATE Shares of UnitedHealth and Pfizer are posting positive momentum Wednesday morning, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average into positive territory. The Dow (DJIA) is trading 153 points, or 0.
- Zacks
IBM Gears Up to Report Q4 Earnings: What's in the Cards?
IBM's Q4 performance is likely to have gained from growing adoption of cloud solutions. However, currency rate fluctuations and declines in IBM Z product cycle may have been concerns.
- PR Newswire
Banco Sabadell Signs Ten-Year Agreement with IBM Services, Aiming to Provide Innovative Digital Client Experiences Through Hybrid Cloud Strategy
Today, Banco Sabadell, Spain's fourth largest private banking group, and IBM Services (NYSE: IBM) announced the signing of a ten-year services agreement designed to help the bank boost digitization and support the strategic evolution of its business model with IBM cloud capabilities.
- MarketWatch
Tech companies are fighting and working around new laws
Some U.S. tech companies have a simple solution to a raft of new laws that impact their businesses: Fight them in court or interpret them in the best light possible.
- Zacks
IBM (IBM) Dips More Than Broader Markets: What You Should Know
IBM (IBM) closed the most recent trading day at $135.82, moving -0.57% from the previous trading session.
- Yahoo Finance
Companies won a record number of patents in 2019, with Microsoft, Apple and IBM leading the charge
Companies set a record for the largest number of U.S. patents in 2019, boosted in part by a patent surge from Chinese giants like Huawei.
- Investopedia
International Business Machines Earnings: What to Look For From IBM
International Business Machines (IBM) reports Q4 earnings after market close on January 21, 2020. Can the company boost revenue in its Global Technology Services segment?
- TipRanks
What Are the 3 Best Value Stocks in the S&P 500? Here Are the Results
Shoppers everywhere like to find the best value; that’s a given. And investors? Well, investors are just a special case of shoppers – in this case, shopping for stocks. So, how can we define a good value when it comes to stocks? In short, we’re looking for high upside and high dividend yields.TipRanks, a platform that tracks and measures the performance of analysts, offers a set of tools to search the raw data collected from 5,700 Wall Street financial experts and 6,500 publicly traded companies. The basic tool, the Stock Screener, gives investors a set of filters to screen the data and find the stocks that fit the desired profile.Setting the filters to show us stocks with a price target upside above 10% and a dividend yield above 2.5% brings the list down to a manageable 46 companies – that will offer investors a true value for their stock purchase. Let’s look at three of them that have a top spot in the S&P 500.Broadcom, Inc. (AVGO)We’ll start with Broadcom, a stand-by of the semiconductor chip industry. Broadcom’s 2019 sales numbers are not in yet, but it finished 2018 as the sixth largest chip maker by revenues, bringing in $18.46 billion. Riding high from that sales figure, Broadcom stock gained 28% in 2019, matching the broader stock market figures.In December’s fiscal Q4 earnings report, AVGO showed revenue and earnings both above the forecasts. The top-line sales figure was $5.78 billion, up 6.25% year-over-year and up 5% sequentially from Q3. Earnings showed a less impressive gain, but the annual EPS of $5.39 beat the expectation by a half-percent.AVGO shares are well positioned for price appreciation; they are also one of the market’s true dividend champions. The company raised the December dividend payment, to $3.25 per quarter, making the annual payment $13 and the yield 4.34%. That yield is well above the 2% average among S&P-listed companies, and the December increase caps a three-year run of consistent dividend increases.Top analysts see AVGO as a healthy investment. Writing from Morgan Stanley, 5-star analyst Craig Hettenbach says, “We think the stock is poised to outperform after meaningfully lagging the past 2 years… If Broadcom is able to execute in software it would add to what we view as a very compelling franchise in semis (66% weighted market share across 60% of revenue in duopoly structures), creating a diversified and highly profitable and cash generative business.”Hettenbach accordingly rates the stock a Buy, and puts a price target of $367 on the shares, indicating an upside potential of 23%. (To watch Hettenbach’s track record, click here)Mark Lipacis, the eighth-ranked analyst overall in the TipRanks database, agrees that AVGO is poised for gains. Noting that the “company's dividend policy is to return 50% of previous year's FCF to shareholders in the form of a dividend,” he goes on to add, “AVGO expects 6-8% growth in Core Semiconductor business over the next few years. Software business is becoming more predictable and expected to be $7bn in F2020.”In line with his optimism and Buy rating, Lipacis bumped his price target here up by 8%, to $350, implying a 17%. (To watch Lipacis’ track record, click here)Broadcom’s Strong Buy consensus rating is based on 21 analyst reviews, including 16 Buys and 5 Holds. Shares are not cheap, at $299.22, but the average price target suggests room for a 18% upside growth potential this year. (See Broadcom stock analysis at TipRanks)Chevron Corporation (CVX)Chevron, one of the world’s largest oil producers, with a market cap of $220 billion, is facing rough market conditions. Prices in the oil markets are low – 2H19 saw market bottoms near $52 for WTI – while overhead costs remain high. The combination pushed revenue down from ~$14 billion in 2018 to ~$12 billion in 2019.In CVX’s most recent earnings report, for Q3 2019, the company showed a 6% miss on EPS, with the bottom-line number at $1.36 for the quarter. Revenues were down by 4%, at $36.12 billion. During the quarter, the price of crude oil and natural gas liquids fell 24%, from $62 one year ago to $47 per barrel equivalent. A 3% increase in total production helped mitigate the losses.Even though revenues and EPS are down, CVX has been able to maintain its high dividend payout. Oil is an essential commodity, so there will always be a market for it, and cash flow for the oil companies. CVX uses those facts to back up a 4.09% dividend yield, with an annualized payment of $4.76. This yield is approximately double the S&P’s average dividend yield, and well over double the yield of the 2-year and 10-year US Treasury bonds.Piper Sandler analyst Ryan Todd sees the bottom line on CVX supporting a Buy rating. He writes, “Despite the well-telegraphed headwinds, we continue to see CVX’s peer-leading portfolio breakeven and attractive FCF outlook as supporting leading growth in dividends/shareholder returns amongst its peers.”Todd’s $143 price target on CVX shares implies room for a 23% upside. (To watch Todd’s track record, click here.)Roger Read, reviewing CVX for Well Fargo, lays out an upbeat track for the company in 2020: “Driven by its unconventional plays, deepwater assets and LNG projects, [we see CVX bringing in] modest, returns-focused production growth expectations, expanding margins from high-grading and cost controls, dividend growth, potential share repurchases and solid balance sheet.”Read gives CVX a Buy rating with a $142 price target, showing his confidence in 22% forward growth. (To watch Read’s track record, click here)The difficulties of the oil market can be seen in Chevron’s analyst consensus, a Moderate Buy rating based on 6 Buys, 3 Holds, and 1 Sell. The average price target of $137 implies an upside of 18% from the $116 current trading price. (See Chevron’s stock analysis at TipRanks)International Business Machines (IBM)The last stock on our list is an old-name blue-chip standard of the markets, and a long-time component of the Dow Jones index, IBM. It’s a name that everyone knows – IBM got its start in business tech when that meant gear-driven mechanical calculators and card-punch time clocks. After WWII, IBM was at the forefront of the electronic computer revolution, evolving from punch card machines to magnetic tape drives to the early floppy disks. The ubiquitous PC got its start with an IBM operating system. Today, business tech is moving toward the cloud, and IBM acquired cloud innovator Red Hat last year, to get a foothold in the cloud market. With a market cap of $121 billion and annual revenues in the neighborhood of $80 billion, IBM has plenty of resources to change direction.Staying at the top isn’t cheap, though. IBM had to spend $34 billion on the Red Had acquisition, and saw a major bookkeeping loss in its most recent reported quarter, Q3 of 2019. The quarterly revenue hit was heavy – the top line was down $190 million to, to $18.03 billion. On the positive side, Red Hat, in its first quarter as a subsidiary, saw revenues rise 20%, and EPS was in line with the forecasts, at $2.68.While closing the Red Hat deal, IBM management announced that it would freeze the dividend at current levels for at least the next year. While this forestalls growth, the actual payment remains high - $1.62 per quarter. Annually, this translates to $6.48 and a yield of 4.74%. IBM has, since 2011, committed to maintaining the dividend payment, as a boon to investors.Matthew Cabral, 4-star analyst with Credit Suisse, is upbeat on IBM. He notes the “solid start” of Red Hat as part of the IBM parent company, and then adds, “[W]e think that inflection starts in 4Q, with an early boost from mainframe before passing the baton to Red Hat and the related pull-through of “core” IBM in CY20. Indeed, early progress on Red Hat is encouraging and we continue to believe the acquisition significantly improves IBM’s standing in the rapid push toward hybrid cloud.”Cabral backs his outlook with a Buy rating and a $173 price target. His target suggests room for 26% share appreciation in 2020. (To watch Cabral’s track record, click here)IBM’s Moderate Buy consensus rating reflects the company’s recent mixed results on revenues, and debt from the Red Hat purchase. The stock has an even split – 4 Buy ratings and 4 Holds. Shares sell for $136, and the average price target of $162.67 implies an upside potential of 19%. (See IBM stock analysis at TipRanks)
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