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

Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-five brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have assigned a hold recommendation, twenty-one have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $204.11.

AAPL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Apple from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. 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. DZ Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Maxim Group assumed coverage on Apple in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $178.00 price target for the company. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a “neutral” rating and set a $196.00 price objective (up from $189.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday.

Apple Stock Performance

Apple stock opened at $183.38 on Tuesday. Apple has a 1-year low of $164.07 and a 1-year high of $199.62. The company’s 50-day moving average is $172.17 and its 200 day moving average is $181.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.83 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.02. Apple had a return on equity of 153.25% and a net margin of 26.31%. The firm had revenue of $90.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.52 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Apple will post 6.53 EPS for the current year.

Apple declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, May 2nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $110.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total value of $18,094,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total value of $9,244,782.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 136,572 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,068,376.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total transaction of $18,094,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,434,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $802,392,181.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 366,271 shares of company stock worth $63,653,887. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hemington Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.5% during the 1st 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. raised its position in shares of Apple by 11.9% in the first quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 25,764 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $4,418,000 after acquiring an additional 2,732 shares during the period. Howland Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC now owns 367,082 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $62,947,000 after acquiring an additional 7,091 shares in the last quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 1.0% during the 1st 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 increased its stake in shares of Apple by 9.3% in the 1st quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC now owns 5,497 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $943,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares in the last quarter. 60.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.