Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the thirty-five brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $204.11.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AAPL. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Apple from $186.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Maxim Group started coverage on Apple in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. They set a “hold” rating and a $178.00 price target for the company. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of Apple from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total transaction of $18,094,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,434,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $802,392,181.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Apple news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total transaction of $18,094,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,434,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $802,392,181.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 99,183 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.03, for a total value of $16,864,085.49. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,377,407 shares in the company, valued at $574,260,512.21. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 366,271 shares of company stock valued at $63,653,887 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apple

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wyrmwood Management LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 69.0% in the 4th quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the first quarter worth $35,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 17.9% in the first quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 31,278 shares during the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new position in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC boosted its position in shares of Apple by 118.0% during the fourth quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Up 6.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $183.38 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The company has a market cap of $2.83 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.26. Apple has a 52 week low of $164.07 and a 52 week high of $199.62. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $172.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $181.60.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $90.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.37 billion. Apple had a net margin of 26.31% and a return on equity of 153.25%. Apple’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.52 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Apple will post 6.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.93%.

Apple announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 2nd that permits the company to buyback $110.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About Apple

Apple Inc designs, manufactures, and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and accessories worldwide. The company offers iPhone, a line of smartphones; Mac, a line of personal computers; iPad, a line of multi-purpose tablets; and wearables, home, and accessories comprising AirPods, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Beats products, and HomePod.