Stock splits used to be common corporate practice. According to the CFA Institute Journal Review, the frequency of stock splits began to increase in the 1920s and peaked in 1982, when about 23% of publicly traded companies split their shares. Tech titan IBM split its stock more than a dozen times during that period.
Back then, companies split their shares when their prices reached “high” levels, typically $100 or more, to make them more affordable for individual investors.
Today, the rise of electronic trading platforms such as Robinhood and WeBull has made it easier for investors to purchase fractional shares, and institutional investors have increased overall liquidity, thereby reducing the need for companies to split their shares.
As a result, stock splits are now seen more as symbolic gestures or proclamations of success. For example, both Apple (AAPL) and Nvidia (NVDA) split their shares after significant share price gains.
Stock splits also typically signify positive momentum for a company, and investors typically respond to a stock split announcement by buying even more shares.
Still, analysts are quick to point out that a stock split doesn’t change the total value of an investor’s shares; only the number of shares owned and the price of each share changes.
So while stock splits were once a routine part of corporate strategy, today they have become a much less common practice. Few companies illustrate that shift more clearly than IBM, which hasn’t run a traditional stock split in decades.
Related: Is IBM a good investment in 2026? Explaining your purchasing and retention prospects
IBM has executed more than a dozen stock splits since its founding in 1911. In fact, if you had purchased one share of IBM stock before May 29, 1973, you would have 20.92 shares of IBM today.
Here is a complete list of the company’s stock splits:
|
registration date
|
Payment date
|
Stock Split Type
|
|
02/16/1926
|
02/27/1926
|
3 for 1
|
|
01/16/1946
|
01/28/1946
|
25%
|
|
01/23/1948
|
02/06/1948
|
75%
|
|
05/07/1954
|
05/10/1954
|
25%
|
|
05/04/1956
|
05/15/1956
|
25%
|
|
05/07/1957
|
05/13/1957
|
2 for 1
|
|
05/05/1959
|
05/18/1959
|
50%
|
|
05/05/1961
|
05/16/1961
|
50%
|
|
05/05/1964
|
05/18/1964
|
25%
|
|
05/03/1966
|
05/18/1966
|
50%
|
|
05/09/1968
|
05/24/1968
|
2 for 1
|
|
05/10/1973
|
05/29/1973
|
25%
|
|
05/10/1979
|
05/31/1979
|
4 for 1
|
|
05/09/1997
|
05/27/1997
|
2 for 1
|
|
05/10/1999
|
05/26/1999
|
2 for 1
|
Source: IBM
IBM’s stock splits occurred during times of expansion, especially in the late 20th century, when the technology sector dominated.
In 1979, for example, the company introduced its 4300 series processors and advanced color display terminals, bringing previously bulky mainframe computing powers to everyday workplaces. On May 31, 1979, IBM executed a massive 4-for-1 stock split.
Later in the 1990s, under transformative CEO Louis Gerstner, the company moved from selling just hardware to offering consulting and IT services, which would account for more than half of its revenue.
And in 1997, Deep Blue, IBM’s supercomputer, beat world chess champion Garry Kasparov, bringing the potential of machine learning to public attention for the first time.
On May 27, 1997, IBM split its shares 2 for 1.
The last time IBM executed a traditional stock split was in 1999, after making a strategic investment in Linux, becoming the first company to use open source technology in its mainframe servers.
IBM split its shares 2 for 1 on May 26, 1999.
Related: How many employees will work at IBM in 2026? Job Locations and Recent Layoffs Explained
To focus on its hybrid cloud and artificial intelligence offerings, on November 3, 2021, IBM spun off its Kyndryl business. This meant that Kyndryl (KD) became an independent IT services company with its own publicly traded shares; It was not a stock split.
According to Fast Company, this is an increasingly common practice among companies to avoid becoming targets of activist investors.
IBM sent a letter to shareholders explaining that the move was a “prorated dividend” distribution and that 80.1% of Kyndryl’s common stock would be distributed to IBM shareholders.
Dow Company Stories:
For every five IBM shares they held on October 25, 2021, IBM shareholders received one share of new Kyndryl (KD) stock. The tax-free distribution took place on November 3, 2021.
This spinoff did not change the number of IBM shares held by shareholders.
As separate businesses, IBM and Kyndryl would have “more agility to focus on their operating and financial models, both will have greater freedom to partner with others, and both will align their investments and capital with their strategic focus areas,” the letter said. He added: “All of this will create value for customers and for you, the investors, with an improved financial profile of both companies.”
Related: What does IBM do? Within your artificial intelligence, cloud and consulting business
Aside from the rise of fractional trading, which reduced the need to run stock splits, along with the growing popularity of spinning off corporate divisions, which is a different way to restructure business growth, IBM has shifted its focus toward consistent dividend growth and long-term stability, making stock splits less relevant to its overall strategy.
After all, 30 consecutive years of quarterly cash increases put IBM in the elite category of dividend aristocrats, and that’s something the company will always prioritize.
Related: Best Dow Dividend Stocks: A Short List for Income Investors
This story was originally published by TheStreet on April 20, 2026, where it first appeared in the Investments section. Add TheStreet as a preferred source by clicking here.
