Following International Business Machines Corp.’s (IBM) annual investor meeting in California on Thursday, analysts at Goldman Sachs came away with a positive view of the company’s long-term outlook.

The analysts maintain a “Buy” rating on IBM with a price target of $233.00. This valuation suggests a 16% upside to Thursday’s closing price of $200.83.

Goldman Sachs analyst Bill Shope commented, “Overall, we came away encouraged with the company’s long-term strategy, steady earnings growth and prospects for potential sources of upside to its 2015 roadmap.”

“We continue to believe IBM’s recurring revenue streams provide a natural counter cyclical earnings and margin buffer. As such, we believe the stock remains a core holding for enterprise technology investors,” added Shoppe.

IBM shares were up a fraction during morning trading on Friday. The stock is up +2% over the past year.

The Bottom Line
Shares of IBM Corp (IBM) have a dividend yield of 1.69% based on Friday’s intraday trading price of $201.61 and the company’s annualized dividend payout of $3.40 per share.

International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) is not recommended at this time, holding a Dividend.com DARS™ Rating of 3.4 out of 5 stars.

Be sure to visit our complete recommended list of the Best Dividend Stocks, as well as a detailed explanation of our ratings system here.