Stifel Lifts IBM Price Target Following $11B Confluent Acquisition

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) is included among the 15 Best Stocks to Buy for the Long Term.

On December 9, Stifel analyst David Grossman lifted his price target on International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) to $325 from $295 after the company announced its plan to acquire Confluent for $11 billion in cash. He kept his Buy rating in place and noted that IBM has historically been able to get strong leverage out of companies that struggle to break into large enterprises and offer meaningful cost synergies. The analyst described the acquisition as a “solid deal” for IBM.

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) on December 8 announced that it is moving to buy Confluent, the data streaming platform, in an $11 billion deal transaction that includes debt. This is one of IBM’s largest deals to date and reflects a major push into enterprise software that supports real-time data needs for artificial intelligence tools. The Big Blue plans to pay $31 per share, and Bloomberg’s calculation of Confluent’s Class A and Class B shares put the equity value of the offer at roughly $10.9 billion.

Both companies expect the deal to close by mid-2026. If the transaction does not go through or is terminated, International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) will owe Confluent a breakup fee of $453.6 million, according to the regulatory filing that accompanied the announcement.

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) is one of the leading American multinational tech companies, widely known for its hybrid cloud platform, AI capabilities, consulting services, and a broad range of enterprise software and hardware.

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