IBM price target raised to $200 from $190 at Jefferies

Jefferies raised the firm’s price target on IBM to $200 from $190 and keeps a Hold rating on the shares post the Q2 report. IBM delivered mixed results with a higher margin software beat and lower margin consulting miss, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm says the software beat was driven by the older mainframe business, while other software segments like Red Hat, data and artificial intelligence missed expectations. Jefferies says that while the quality of the beat was lower, it is encouraged by IBM’s artificial intelligence book of business doubling to $2B quarter-over-quarter. The stock “remains cheap” but a lack of near-term growth catalyst keeps Jefferies on the sidelines, the analyst notes.