PREVIEW: IBM shares up 2%; Q2 rev, EPS seen rising 

** Shares in International Business Machines IBM up ~2% on Wednesday ahead of its Q2 financial report due after market close

** Wall Street sees the tech giant reporting Q2 adj EPS of $2.64 vs $2.43 in Q2 2024 on rev of $16.59 bln vs $15.77 bln year-ago, according to latest data from LSEG

** In last 8 quarters IBM rev met or beat Street expectations 5 times while EPS beat every time

** In April IBM forecast second-quarter revenue above Wall Street estimates, betting on resilient demand for its software services despite economic uncertainty brought on by President Trump's trade policy. However at the time its bullish outlook was overshadowed by news that 15 of its government contracts had been shelved under the administration's drive to cut costs

** IBM last traded at $287.09, vs median PT of $285, which is up from $260 a month ago, according to LSEG which shows 23 analyst ratings: 5 'strong buy,' 4 'buy,' 11 'hold' and 3 'sell'

** YTD shares of IBM up ~31% vs ~11% gain for S&P 500 tech index S5INFT and 5.4% gain for the Dow DJI

** IBM options imply a 6.5% swing for the shares, in either direction, by Friday, just below the stock's 8-qtr post earnings 1-day avg move of 6.8%, according to Trade Alert