ARMONK, N.Y. - In a move to bolster its data transformation services, IBM (NYSE:IBM), a $211 billion market cap prominent player in the IT Services industry, has acquired Hakkoda Inc., a prominent data and AI consultancy firm known for its expertise in data platform services. The acquisition, which closed on April 2, 2025, is aimed at enhancing IBM’s capabilities to meet the increasing demand for data services and to assist clients in preparing their data for AI-driven business applications.According to InvestingPro data, IBM has demonstrated strong financial performance with revenue reaching $62.8 billion in the last twelve months, while maintaining a healthy gross profit margin of 56.7%.
Hakkoda, recognized for its proficiency in migrating, modernizing, and monetizing data estates, is also an award-winning partner of Snowflake, a cloud-based data-warehousing company. This partnership is expected to amplify IBM’s delivery of integrated enterprise data estates that are optimized for various business use cases in terms of speed, cost, and efficiency.
The addition of Hakkoda to IBM Consulting will not only expand IBM’s data service offerings but also introduce a suite of generative AI-powered assets designed to expedite data modernization projects. Hakkoda’s industry solutions are set to complement IBM’s existing services, particularly in sectors such as financial services, the public sector, and healthcare and life sciences.
Mohamad Ali, Senior Vice President and Head of IBM Consulting, stated that the acquisition will position IBM to deliver enhanced value to clients as they undergo AI transformations. Erik Duffield, CEO and Co-founder of Hakkoda, expressed enthusiasm for joining IBM, citing a shared commitment to shaping the future of data modernization.
Hakkoda has garnered recognition within the industry, earning titles such as the 2024 Snowflake Healthcare & Life Sciences Services Partner of the Year and the 2023 Snowflake Americas System Integrator Innovation Partner of the Year. The firm also boasts an advanced-tier partnership with AWS.
The acquisition comes at a time when global spending on enterprise intelligence services initiatives is estimated at $169 billion, with expectations to grow to more than $243 billion by 2028, according to IDC. Hakkoda’s team, spread across the United States, Latin America, India, Europe, and the United Kingdom, will join IBM Consulting, though financial details of the transaction have not been disclosed.Recent InvestingPro analysis indicates IBM is currently trading above its Fair Value, with the stock showing a 24.3% return over the past year despite an 8.5% decline in the last week. For deeper insights into IBM’s valuation and 12 additional ProTips, including dividend history and profitability metrics, consider exploring IBM’s comprehensive Pro Research Report, available exclusively on InvestingPro.
This strategic move is based on a press release statement and reflects IBM’s ongoing efforts to enhance its global hybrid cloud and AI offerings, as well as its consulting expertise, to help clients leverage data insights and achieve competitive advantages in their respective industries. The company’s strong financial health is reflected in its robust cash flow generation, with levered free cash flow of $12.4 billion in the last twelve months.
In other recent news, IBM has extended its semiconductor research and development partnership with Tokyo Electron (TEL) for another five years. This collaboration aims to advance semiconductor technologies crucial for generative AI applications. IBM’s strategic focus on AI is further highlighted by its new partnership with NVIDIA to enhance enterprise AI capabilities, including the introduction of a content-aware storage feature for IBM Fusion hybrid cloud infrastructure. In addition, IBM plans to expand its watsonx integrations with NVIDIA to support AI model deployment across multiple cloud environments.
Analyst activity around IBM has seen Erste Group upgrade the stock from Hold to Buy, citing stronger sales growth expectations driven by the growth of Red Hat software and increased AI application implementation. IBM’s operating profit is expected to rise at a faster pace than its revenue, with free cash flow projected to reach $13.5 billion this year. Meanwhile, Evercore ISI maintained an Outperform rating on IBM, with a $275 price target, though they expressed concern about potential impacts on IBM’s Consulting segment due to challenges faced by Accenture in federal government spending.
These recent developments reflect IBM’s continued focus on growth in AI and hybrid cloud computing, as well as its strategic collaborations to drive innovation and performance.
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