Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Up 0.3%

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares rose 0.3% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $166.71 and last traded at $166.34. Approximately 13,442,888 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 78% from the average daily volume of 60,413,508 shares. The stock had previously closed at $165.84.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Maxim Group started coverage on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $178.00 target price for the company. Bank of America raised Apple from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $208.00 to $225.00 in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $189.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of Apple from $185.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, March 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $203.05.

Apple Stock Up 0.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The company has a market capitalization of $2.57 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.99, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.27. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $174.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $182.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The iPhone maker reported $2.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.09. Apple had a net margin of 26.16% and a return on equity of 156.04%. The company had revenue of $119.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $117.99 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.88 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Investors of record on Monday, February 12th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 9th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.95%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 53,194 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.12, for a total transaction of $9,262,139.28. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 107,788 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,768,046.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Apple news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 99,183 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.03, for a total value of $16,864,085.49. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,377,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $574,260,512.21. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Luca Maestri sold 53,194 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.12, for a total transaction of $9,262,139.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 107,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,768,046.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 366,271 shares of company stock worth $63,653,887 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Apple

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. Wyrmwood Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 69.0% during the 4th quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. acquired a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC boosted its holdings in Apple by 118.0% in the fourth quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. increased its position in shares of Apple by 657.1% during the fourth quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the period. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth about $85,000. 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.