IBM management check
IBM · Information Technology · IT Consulting & Other Services · CEO Mr. Krishna
Filings as of
5 good · 1 to watch · 0 flagged, across the seven questions below.
- Good
Have owners done well?
Beat its chosen peers$100 invested at the start of fiscal 2021 grew to $303, against $210 for the peer group the company picked itself.
- Good
Does pay follow performance?
Pay rose and fell with returnsOver 5 years, the CEO's pay actually paid (equity valued at the share price) had a correlation of 1.00 with shareholder return. 1 means pay moved in step; below 0, the opposite way.
- Good
What does the CEO cost owners?
0.4% of net income$38.0m of reported pay in fiscal 2025, against $10.6bn of net income.
- n/a
Do they own the stock?
No recent CEO filingLight activity: no buys, $5.8m sold in six months.
- Watch
Are owners being diluted?
Share count growingDiluted shares changed +1.4% a year over the last three fiscal years. Stock-based pay was 2.5% of revenue in the latest year.
- Good
Is leadership stable?
5 leadership filings in 3 yearsCEO in the pay table: Mr. Krishna. 5 filings under 8-K item 5.02 (officers or directors leaving or joining, or new pay arrangements) in the last 3 years.
- Good
Are the books clean?
No red flags on fileNo restatements, auditor changes or late filings since 2021.
Against the S&P 500
Each check's score (0–100) and how it compares: the share of ranked S&P 500 companies it matches or beats, and the median in Information Technology.
| Check | Score | At or above | Sector median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner returns | 100 | 33 | |
| Pay for performance | 100 | 87 | |
| CEO cost | 87 | 35 | |
| Skin in the game | — | — | 47 |
| Dilution | 32 | 56 | |
| Stable leadership | 100 | 85 | |
| Clean books | 100 | 100 |
Closest peers
Others in IT Consulting & Other Services, by management score. IBM is 3rd of 73 in its sector.
- 7DELLDell Technologies90
- 15IBMIBM86
- 20NVDANvidia86
- 158ITGartner72
- 363ACNAccenture57
- 410CTSHCognizant52
Pay versus performance
From the proxy statement filed March 10, 2026. "Actually paid" values stock awards at the share price, so it rises and falls with the stock.
| Fiscal year | CEO | CEO pay | Actually paid | Other executives (avg) | $100 became | Peers | Net income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Mr. Krishna | $38.0m | $83.6m | $16.3m | $303 | $210 | $10.6bn |
| 2024 | — | $25.1m | $57.1m | $11.5m | $219 | $169 | $6.0bn |
| 2023 | — | $20.4m | $32.8m | $9.9m | $157 | $135 | $7.5bn |
| 2022 | — | $16.6m | $23.9m | $8.3m | $129 | $92 | $1.6bn |
| 2021 | — | $17.6m | $23.8m | $8.7m | $117 | $130 | $5.7bn |
The board says pay is tied most to Revenue. Its other key measures: Operating cash flow, Operating EPS, Free cash flow.
Insiders and the CEO's stake
Light activity: no buys, $5.8m sold in six months.
- SoldRobert David ThomasSenior Vice President$5.8mAug 26, 2026
Leadership and governance on file
- Oct 1, 2026Leadership change8-K 5.02
- May 1, 2026Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jan 30, 2026Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Feb 1, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Dec 12, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jul 31, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Feb 3, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jan 5, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Feb 4, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
Latest shareholder vote results: May 1, 2026, including the say-on-pay vote.
Where the money went
Over 2021–2025: $30.3bn returned to owners in buybacks and dividends, 96% of net income, and $6.1bn of pay in stock.
| Fiscal year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $57.4bn | $60.5bn | $61.9bn | $62.8bn | $67.5bn |
| Net income | $5.7bn | $1.6bn | $7.5bn | $6.0bn | $10.6bn |
| Stock-based pay | $982.0m | $987.0m | $1.1bn | $1.3bn | $1.7bn |
| Buybacks | — | — | — | — | — |
| Dividends | $5.9bn | $5.9bn | $6.0bn | $6.1bn | $6.3bn |
| Diluted shares | 905m | 912m | 922m | 937m | 949m |
Educational only, not investment advice. Figures are as filed with the SEC: pay from the proxy's pay-versus-performance table, capital allocation from 10-K XBRL data, insider trades from Form 4s over the last six months, events from the last 5 years of filings. The peer group is the one the company chose. See the method.