Where Will IBM Be in 5 Years?
International Business Machines (NYSE: IBM) has redefined itself since Arvind Krishna became CEO in April. The company's moves to increase its cloud focus and spin off a key legacy business will probably make IBM a different tech stock over time. Hence, the degree to which IBM can remake itself as a cloud company will likely determine how much its stock grows over the next five years.
IBM spent most of the last decade struggling as a business that helped companies design and run IT systems and businesses. As the tech industry evolved, its stock peaked back in 2013 and steadily slid amid slowing growth. Looking to align the company with the current tech environment, IBM spent $34 billion to buy cloud giant Red Hat in 2019.
Krishna, who headed IBM's cloud and cognitive software division at that time, spearheaded this acquisition. Red Hat brought IBM into the hybrid cloud market, which it describes as a "$1 trillion market opportunity." With a hybrid cloud system, public and private clouds seamlessly and securely interact, a feature most cloud systems need.
Source Fool.com
