IBM dividend analysis

IBM dividend deep dive

Income read on IBM: trailing yield 4.90%, payout ratio 49%, 5y CAGR 11.9%, 10y CAGR 3.9%. The growth streak runs 30 years.

IBM dividend-safety read: 54/100. The score is the Quality pillar (54/100) penalized for high payout — at 49% of earnings, that adjustment pulls the headline flat or up from raw Quality.

IBM DRIP table at flat yield + growth: 5y ≈ 30.6%, 10y ≈ 70.5%, 20y ≈ 190.8% cumulative income return on the 4.90% starting yield. Useful as a back-of-envelope only — assumes the yield stays at TTM and the growth rate persists.

IBM sits in a peer group of KO (5.00%), PG (1.50%), PEP (2.90%), with the trio yielding a mean of 3.13%. The 4.90% yield on IBM is the cleanest single-number comparison; payout ratio and growth rate are the two follow-ups.

Ex-dividend cadence on IBM: most recent ex-date 2026-03-01, payment 2026-03-15. Quarterly schedules are the norm for US payers; the ex-date is the cutoff for entitlement to the upcoming distribution, while the payment date is when cash hits the brokerage.

Income thesis line for IBM: starting yield of 4.90%, projected growth of 11.9%, safety read 54/100. The forward open question is the durability of the next dividend hike given the 49% earnings payout.