Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) PT Raised to $230.00

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) had its price target boosted by Bank of America from $225.00 to $230.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the iPhone maker’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the stock. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Apple from $185.00 to $170.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Maxim Group assumed coverage on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. They set a hold rating and a $178.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Apple from $210.00 to $216.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Friday. Redburn Atlantic lowered Apple from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $200.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler Companies lowered Apple to a neutral rating and dropped their target price for the company from $220.00 to $205.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $204.11.

Apple Trading Up 6.0 %

AAPL opened at $183.38 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.83 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $172.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $181.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. Apple has a 1-year low of $164.07 and a 1-year high of $199.62.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $90.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.37 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 153.25% and a net margin of 26.31%. The firm’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.52 EPS. Analysts predict that Apple will post 6.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 2nd that allows the company to repurchase $110.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.93%.

Insider Activity

In other Apple news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 99,183 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.03, for a total transaction of $16,864,085.49. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,377,407 shares in the company, valued at $574,260,512.21. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other 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 value of $18,094,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,434,576 shares in the company, valued at $802,392,181.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 99,183 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.03, for a total transaction of $16,864,085.49. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,377,407 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 quarter. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AAPL. Wyrmwood Management LLC raised its stake in Apple by 69.0% in the fourth quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc bought a new position in shares of Apple in the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 17.9% during the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 31,278 shares in the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC grew its position in Apple by 118.0% in the fourth quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. 60.41% of the stock is owned by 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.