Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Price Target Raised to $203.00 at Maxim Group

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) had its target price upped by Maxim Group from $195.00 to $203.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Maxim Group currently has a hold rating on the iPhone maker’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on AAPL. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Saturday, May 4th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Apple from $216.00 to $273.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. UBS Group reiterated a neutral rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, July 1st. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $234.29.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $209.27 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $213.76 and a 200 day moving average of $191.35. The stock has a market cap of $3.21 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.24. Apple has a 12 month low of $164.07 and a 12 month high of $237.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $85.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.43 billion. Apple had a net margin of 26.44% and a return on equity of 145.35%. Apple’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.26 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Apple will post 6.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 12th. Apple’s payout ratio is 15.55%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.58, for a total transaction of $14,368,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,359,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $835,207,570.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Apple news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.58, for a total transaction of $14,368,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,359,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $835,207,570.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.40, for a total transaction of $951,809.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 29,278 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,574,531.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apple

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc bought a new position in shares of Apple in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 17.9% in the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 31,278 shares during the period. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 118.0% in the 4th quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. increased its holdings in Apple by 657.1% in the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

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.