Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-six research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $244.85.

Several research analysts have recently commented on AAPL shares. UBS Group set a $270.00 price target on Apple in a report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lifted their price target on Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley set a $275.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Apple to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.97, for a total transaction of $24,997,000.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 389,944 shares in the company, valued at $97,474,301.68. This trade represents a 20.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Apple by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC now owns 27,625 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $6,918,000 after acquiring an additional 1,863 shares in the last quarter. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $27,451,000. Aurdan Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $856,000. PVG Asset Management Corp acquired a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $672,000. Finally, Perennial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $31,508,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Price Performance

Apple stock opened at $245.55 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $240.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $232.88. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $3.69 trillion, a P/E ratio of 38.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.20. Apple has a 1 year low of $164.07 and a 1 year high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Apple will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.41%. Apple’s payout ratio is 15.87%.

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.