Apple’s (AAPL) “Neutral” Rating Reiterated at Rosenblatt Securities

Rosenblatt Securities reissued their neutral rating on shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) in a research report report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Rosenblatt Securities currently has a $303.00 price target on the iPhone maker’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on AAPL. HSBC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $366.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday. Moffett Nathanson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $304.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, August 17th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $365.00 target price (up from $315.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated an “underperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $334.91.

Apple Trading Up 1.7%

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $332.27 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $4.85 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.08. Apple has a one year low of $229.02 and a one year high of $344.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.00. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $318.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $292.45.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%.The firm had revenue of $109.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.57 EPS. Apple’s quarterly revenue was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Apple will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 12.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,438 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $317.23, for a total value of $456,176.74. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 34,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,897,484.96. This trade represents a 4.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,425,754.82. This trade represents a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 7,310 shares of company stock valued at $2,279,378. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apple

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. First National Bank of Hutchinson raised its position in shares of Apple by 24.6% during the 4th quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $8,845,000 after purchasing an additional 6,982 shares during the period. Eagle Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Apple by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $13,544,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Apple by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $134,554,000 after purchasing an additional 69,207 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Apple by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,857 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $16,742,000 after buying an additional 2,695 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE grew its stake in Apple by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 50,264 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $12,587,000 after buying an additional 1,155 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: iPhone Duo creates a potential new growth cycle. Apple’s $1,999 foldable iPhone, scheduled to arrive October 23, could drive upgrades, deepen ecosystem engagement and add a high-margin premium product category. Some analysts believe foldables could eventually account for 10% to 20% of iPhone revenue. How Wall Street viewed Apple’s foldable iPhone
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see renewed hardware momentum. Alongside the Duo, Apple unveiled the iPhone 18 Pro lineup, new Apple Watch models, AirPods 5 and expanded Siri AI features. TD Cowen maintained a Buy rating with a $400 target, supporting the bullish reaction. TD Cowen reiterates Buy rating
• Positive Sentiment: Carrier promotions could reduce sticker-price resistance. T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon are offering installment and trade-in incentives for the expensive Duo, potentially broadening access without an immediate industrywide price war. Wireless carrier promotions
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street remains divided. Bank of America retained a Buy rating but lowered its price target to $370, while Rosenblatt kept a Neutral rating and $303 target. The debate centers on Duo demand, supply constraints, valuation and the durability of the upgrade cycle.
• Negative Sentiment: Margin pressure remains the main risk. Apple raised iPhone Pro prices by $100, but memory and other component costs are rising rapidly. Management has already guided to lower gross margins, raising concerns that pricing may not fully offset higher costs. Apple margin pressure from memory costs
• Negative Sentiment: Premium valuation and competition limit upside. Apple trades near the upper end of its historical earnings multiple, while Huawei, Xiaomi and Samsung remain strong competitors in China and the foldable market.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling is a modest cautionary signal. SVP Jennifer Newstead sold approximately $456,000 of stock, reducing her direct holdings by about 4%, although she retains a substantial position.

Apple Company Profile

Apple Inc is a technology company that designs, develops and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its principal products include the iPhone, Mac computers, iPad tablets, Apple Watch, AirPods and other accessories. The company also develops operating systems and applications that support its hardware products.

Apple’s services business includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV, Apple Arcade, Apple Fitness+, Apple News+, Apple Pay and iCloud. These services provide digital content, payments, cloud storage and subscription offerings across the company’s ecosystem of devices.

Founded in 1976, Apple is headquartered in Cupertino, California, and serves consumers, businesses, educational institutions and government customers worldwide.