Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Price Target Raised to $225.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) had its target price increased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $210.00 to $225.00 in a report issued on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the iPhone maker’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Barclays reaffirmed an underweight rating and set a $158.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of Apple from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $200.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Maxim Group started coverage on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. They set a hold rating and a $178.00 price target on the stock. Needham & Company LLC restated a buy rating and issued a $220.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wedbush restated an outperform rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $204.00.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL traded up $10.35 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $183.38. 163,224,109 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 59,692,680. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $172.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $181.57. 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 stock has a market capitalization 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 twelve month low of $164.07 and a twelve month high of $199.62.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $90.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $90.37 billion. Apple had a net margin of 26.31% and a return on equity of 153.25%. Apple’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.52 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Apple will post 6.53 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In related news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 53,194 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.12, for a total transaction of $9,262,139.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 107,788 shares in the company, valued at $18,768,046.56. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 53,194 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.12, for a total value of $9,262,139.28. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 107,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,768,046.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 99,183 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 366,271 shares of company stock worth $63,653,887. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hemington Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.5% during the first quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 149,874 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $25,701,000 after purchasing an additional 2,175 shares in the last quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Apple by 11.9% in the first quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 25,764 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $4,418,000 after acquiring an additional 2,732 shares during the period. Howland Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 2.0% in the first quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC now owns 367,082 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $62,947,000 after acquiring an additional 7,091 shares during the period. PrairieView Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 1.0% in the first quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC now owns 24,932 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $4,276,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares during the period. Finally, Keener Financial Planning LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 9.3% in the first quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC now owns 5,497 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $943,000 after acquiring an additional 469 shares during the period. 60.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Company Profile

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.