Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Trading 0.9% Higher – Here’s Why

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) traded up 0.9% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $221.03 and last traded at $220.25. 11,228,381 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 52,543,055 shares. The stock had previously closed at $218.27.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Argus raised shares of Apple to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Apple to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $243.65.

Apple Trading Up 1.4 %

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $231.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $233.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market cap of $3.36 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. On average, research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Avant Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth $4,499,000. Fire Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at about $3,710,000. Fulcrum Equity Management increased its position in shares of Apple by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Fulcrum Equity Management now owns 5,510 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,380,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,077,000. Finally, Prostatis Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 28.9% in the fourth quarter. Prostatis Group LLC now owns 26,406 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $6,613,000 after buying an additional 5,918 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

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.