Balance Sheet: Assets
Quarterly Data
The balance sheet provides creditors, investors, and analysts with information on company resources (assets) and its sources of capital (its equity and liabilities). It normally also provides information about the future earnings capacity of a company assets as well as an indication of cash flows that may come from receivables and inventories.
Assets are resources controlled by the company as a result of past events and from which future economic benefits are expected to flow to the entity.
International Business Machines Corp., consolidated balance sheet: assets (quarterly data)
US$ in millions
Based on: 10-Q (reporting date: 2026-03-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2025-12-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2025-09-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2025-06-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2025-03-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2024-12-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2024-09-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2024-06-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2024-03-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2023-12-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2023-09-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2023-06-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2023-03-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2022-12-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2022-09-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2022-06-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2022-03-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2021-12-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2021-09-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2021-06-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2021-03-31).
Total assets exhibited a U-shaped trajectory over the analyzed period, declining from 148.6 billion USD in March 2021 to a trough of 125.8 billion USD in September 2022, before entering a sustained recovery phase to reach 156.2 billion USD by March 2026. This overall growth in the latter half of the period is primarily driven by an expansion in noncurrent assets, particularly goodwill and intangible assets.
- Liquidity and Short-Term Asset Management
- Cash and cash equivalents demonstrated significant volatility, fluctuating between a low of 6.6 billion USD in December 2021 and a peak of 14.6 billion USD in March 2024. Marketable securities showed even more pronounced variability, with notable spikes in March 2023 (8.1 billion USD) and March 2025 (6.4 billion USD), suggesting active tactical management of short-term investment portfolios. Total current assets generally remained within a range of 27 billion to 36 billion USD, with periodic peaks coinciding with higher cash balances.
- Operational Asset Trends
- Net property, plant, and equipment experienced a sharp contraction between September 2021 (9.1 billion USD) and December 2021 (5.7 billion USD), after which the balance remained relatively stagnant, fluctuating narrowly between 5.3 billion and 5.9 billion USD through March 2026. Inventory levels showed a gradual downward trend from 2021 levels, stabilizing around 1.2 billion to 1.5 billion USD. Trade receivables remained consistent, typically ranging between 5.3 billion and 7.2 billion USD, though a notable peak occurred in December 2025 at 8.1 billion USD.
- Strategic and Long-Term Asset Growth
- Goodwill represents the largest component of the balance sheet and serves as the primary driver of total asset growth. After a period of relative stability around 55 billion to 60 billion USD, goodwill rose sharply starting in 2025, reaching 74.7 billion USD by March 2026. This trend is mirrored in net intangible assets, which jumped from 11.4 billion USD in September 2025 to 14.6 billion USD in March 2026. These concurrent increases strongly indicate significant acquisition activity during the final year of the period.
- Other Noncurrent Assets
- Deferred tax assets showed a general upward trend from 6.3 billion USD in June 2023 to 8.6 billion USD by December 2025. Prepaid pension assets remained relatively stable, fluctuating between 7.5 billion and 10 billion USD, providing a consistent buffer within the noncurrent asset structure.
The transition in asset composition reveals a strategic shift toward intangible-heavy growth. While operational assets like PP&E remained flat, the substantial increase in goodwill and intangible assets by March 2026 indicates that recent balance sheet expansion is derived from external acquisitions rather than internal capital expenditures.
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