Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Earns Buy Rating from Needham & Company LLC

Needham & Company LLC restated their buy rating on shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) in a research report released on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $220.00 target price on the iPhone maker’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on AAPL. UBS Group reaffirmed a hold rating and set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Apple from $186.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Redburn Partners cut shares of Apple to a neutral rating and set a $200.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Apple from $215.00 to $210.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an outperform rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $203.34.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of Apple stock opened at $167.04 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.58 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.27. Apple has a 1-year low of $162.80 and a 1-year high of $199.62. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $175.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $182.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The iPhone maker reported $2.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $119.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $117.99 billion. Apple had a net margin of 26.16% and a return on equity of 156.04%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.88 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Apple will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Investors of record on Monday, February 12th were given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 9th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.95%.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director now directly owns 4,434,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $802,392,181.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Apple news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total transaction of $18,094,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,434,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $802,392,181.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total transaction of $9,244,782.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 136,572 shares in the company, valued at $23,068,376.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 366,271 shares of company stock valued at $63,653,887. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Conservest Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Conservest Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 16,802 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,877,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Flagstone Financial Management increased its stake in shares of Apple by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Flagstone Financial Management now owns 6,092 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,173,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Family Wealth Inc. increased its stake in shares of Apple by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Family Wealth Inc. now owns 9,202 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,772,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. High Pines Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. High Pines Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,506 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,638,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kraft Davis & Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Kraft Davis & Associates LLC now owns 6,716 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,155,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during 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.