International Business Machines Corporation IBM has unveiled new configurations for its IBM z17 and LinuxONE 5 platforms, expanding its enterprise infrastructure portfolio with compact single-frame and rack-mount systems. Both deployment options are available across the company’s entire Z and LinuxONE lineup, giving organizations greater flexibility to optimize data center space while maintaining high performance, security and reliability.
The latest systems support up to 82 processor cores and 18 TB of memory, delivering more computing power in a compact design. The IBM z17 ME2 offers better per-core performance than the previous generation. These upgrades are designed to address limited data center space and rising operating costs. IBM gives customers the flexibility to deploy either fully integrated single-frame systems or rack-mount configurations that fit into industry-standard racks.
IBM also expanded its LinuxONE product lineup with Rockhopper 5, offered in both scalable and compact models. The systems include built-in artificial intelligence (AI) acceleration, confidential computing, and post-quantum cryptography for secure and efficient Linux workloads. In addition, it has launched software tools such as IBM Infrastructure Management for Z and LinuxONE and IBM COBOL Elevate for z/OS to simplify infrastructure management and improve the performance of existing applications.
The company has introduced new security enhancements, including post-quantum cryptography as a standard feature on its systems and IBM Crypto Discovery & Inventory to help organizations manage their security. With these updates, IBM aims to provide flexible, AI-powered and secure solutions allowing businesses to improve performance and optimize their IT infrastructure.
How Are Competitors Advancing in the Enterprise Market?
IBM faces competition from Microsoft Corporation MSFT and Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN. Microsoft is strengthening its enterprise business by expanding AI services across Azure, Microsoft 365 and Copilot. The company has launched Microsoft Frontier Company to help businesses adopt AI with dedicated engineering support. Microsoft is expanding its Sovereign Cloud offerings to help enterprises and government organizations meet data security, compliance and data residency requirements.
Amazon is expanding its AI and cloud services for businesses through Amazon Web Services (“AWS”). The company has launched the Forward Deployed Engineering initiative to help enterprises adopt AI faster. Amazon is also introducing new tools on AWS to simplify the development and deployment of business applications.
IBM’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
IBM shares have gained 5.5% over the past year compared with the industry’s growth of 216.3%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, IBM trades at a forward price-to-sales ratio of 3.93, below the industry average of 6.1.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Earnings estimates for 2026 have increased 0.4% to $12.45 over the past 60 days, while the same for 2027 have increased 0.8% to $13.47.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
IBM currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Beyond Nvidia: AI’s Second Wave Is Here
The AI revolution has already minted millionaires. But the stocks everyone knows about aren’t likely to keep delivering the biggest profits. AI’s second wave is moving from infrastructure to implementation and these companies are at the forefront of this transition, positioned to become what Amazon and Google were to the internet era.
International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) : Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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