By Trefis Team
Publication Date: 2026-10-07 22:47:00
Over the past three months, IBM (IBM) stock lost 26%, while the S&P 500 gained 4.8%. During its July 22, 2026 earnings call, management acknowledged that second quarter results fell short of expectations. Tens of large deals failed to close on time, accounting for most of this shortfall. Executives believe customers delayed these deals rather than canceling them. How much of that business began trickling back before the quarter wrapped up?
About A Third Of Delayed Deals Closed Within Weeks
By the July 22 call, management said that about a third of the delayed deals had closed within three weeks. Executives took this as a good indication, though not yet full evidence, that customers had only postponed.
According to management, many clients redirected their budgets toward servers, storage, and memory. These buyers wanted to secure scarce hardware ahead of expected price increases.
Meanwhile, IBM’s growth has…
