Analyst butterflies before earnings
Evercore ISI’s Amit Daryanani is basically saying, “Don’t sleep on IBM.” The firm added IBM to its Tactical Outperform list on April 20, expecting the company to top first-quarter expectations and come out with a better 2026 constant-currency growth forecast.
Why that matters
This isn’t IBM doing the talking yet — it’s Wall Street leaning in ahead of the numbers. Still, when an analyst gets more upbeat right before earnings, it can matter because it shapes the mood music around the print. If IBM can deliver a decent beat and raise its growth outlook, that’s the kind of combo that can keep the stock’s recent swagger going.
The setup is pretty simple
You’ve got three moving pieces here:
- IBM reports Q1 on April 22
- Evercore expects the company to beat consensus
- The analyst also sees room for a higher 2026 revenue growth forecast on a constant-currency basis
That’s not a guarantee of fireworks, but it does suggest the bar may be rising rather than falling. And in earnings season, that’s half the battle.
Big picture
IBM has been trying to convince investors it’s more than the old-school mainframe dinosaur in the room. A fresh bullish call before earnings doesn’t prove the story, but it does suggest some folks on Wall Street think the plot still has legs.