Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by investment analysts at Topeka Capital Markets in a note issued to investors on Tuesday. They currently have a $888.00 target price on the stock.

The analysts wrote, “As we anniversary the March 19, 2012 announcement of Apple’s first cash dividend since the last payment in 1995, cash is clearly on investors’ minds this week. We believe creating a safety net around Apple’s stock with a larger cash distribution is the first phase necessary to stabilize Apple’s stock price, followed by a trough in the profit cycle and the ability to open up new, large market opportunities. We believe Apple can complete these three phases in CY13, providing the necessary fuel to push the stock meaningfully higher over the next year.”

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) traded down 0.37% on Tuesday, hitting $452.83. Apple has a 52-week low of $419.00 and a 52-week high of $705.07. The stock’s 50-day moving average is currently $448.5. The company has a market cap of $425.2 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.30.

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 23rd. The company reported $13.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $13.55 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $54.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $54.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $13.87 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Apple will post $44.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A number of other firms have also recently commented on AAPL. Analysts at Sterne Agee reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research note to investors on Friday, March 15th. They now have a $630.00 price target on the stock, down previously from $715.00. Separately, analysts at UBS AG cut their price target on shares of Apple from $600.00 to $560.00 in a research note to investors on Friday, March 15th. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, analysts at BTIG Research upgraded shares of Apple from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note to investors on Thursday, March 14th. They now have a $540.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $45.00.

Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, forty-one have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. The stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $607.03.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) designs, manufactures and markets mobile communication and media devices, personal computers, and portable digital music players, and a variety of related software, services, peripherals, networking solutions, and third-party digital content and applications.