Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Given “Outperform” Rating at Wedbush

Wedbush reaffirmed their outperform rating on shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) in a research report report published on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $285.00 target price on the iPhone maker’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Apple from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Bank of America reissued a buy rating and set a $256.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an outperform rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on 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, eleven have given a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $238.62.

Apple Trading Up 0.0 %

Apple stock opened at $222.77 on Monday. Apple has a 52 week low of $164.07 and a 52 week high of $237.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.42 trillion, a PE ratio of 34.65, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.24. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $223.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $198.23.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.06. Apple had a return on equity of 147.15% and a net margin of 26.44%. The company had revenue of $85.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $84.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.26 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Apple will post 6.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.55%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other Apple news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total value of $20,644,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 8,706 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total value of $1,958,850.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,419 shares in the company, valued at $3,469,275. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total transaction of $20,644,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 191,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 113,884 shares of company stock worth $23,723,887. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apple

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc acquired a new stake in Apple in the first quarter worth $35,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Apple by 17.9% during the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 31,278 shares during the period. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. acquired a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in Apple during the second quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. grew its stake in Apple by 657.1% in the fourth quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 368 shares during the period. 60.41% of the stock is currently 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.