Oppenheimer Downgrades IBM to Perform, Cites Slow Progress on Financial Goals

According to CNBC, Oppenheimer downgraded IBM to perform from outperform, citing the company's lackluster progress toward its financial objectives. The investment firm said the bull thesis will take longer to materialize and expects the stock to be range-bound in the near term. IBM shares plunged 25% on Tuesday after the company posted preliminary second-quarter adjusted earnings of $2.93 per share on revenue of $17.2 billion, both below FactSet consensus estimates. Oppenheimer noted that while there were bright spots such as RedHat, HashiCorp, Confluent, and server/storage, it will be difficult for IBM to meet its full-year guidance or achieve double-digit constant currency software growth for 2026 and 2027. The downgrade contrasts with the broader Wall Street view, as LSEG data shows 16 of 26 analysts rate IBM buy or strong buy.