By Redaktion ad-hoc-news.de
Publication Date: 2026-02-13 12:43:00
After posting sturdy quarterly figures, IBM investors redirected their focus to a costly takeover that fans concerns about the company’s leverage. The question now is whether the strategic pivot justifies the increased debt load.
Markets hit the pause button on IBM’s stock on Thursday, driving shares lower by a hefty margin and making the name one of the weak links in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The stock slid roughly 4.8% to 6.5% on the session, closing at 257.22 USD and marking the steepest one-day decline in months. Trading volume surged to about 12.5 million shares, a jump of 133% from the typical daily level. The options market also reflected growing skepticism, with bets on lower prices rising notably.
The keynote driver behind the selloff is IBM’s plan to acquire Confluent, a specialist in data streaming. The deal values Confluent at about 11.9 billion USD, with IBM offering 31 USD per share, a premium of 35% over the 30-day average trading price. While…