Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Trading 1.7% Higher – Here’s Why

Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) traded up 1.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $239.42 and last traded at $240.87. 12,178,689 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 78% from the average session volume of 54,154,785 shares. The stock had previously closed at $236.87.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Apple to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Apple from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Apple from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their target price for the company from $211.84 to $200.75 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $242.52.

Apple Price Performance

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 company has a market cap of $3.63 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.35, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.20. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $240.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $231.34.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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, research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.41%. Apple’s payout ratio is 15.87%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 389,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $97,474,301.68. This represents a 20.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,130 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.87, for a total transaction of $945,233.10. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,419 shares in the company, valued at $3,528,946.53. This trade represents a 21.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apple

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Argent Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 593,117 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $148,528,000 after purchasing an additional 5,109 shares in the last quarter. Blue Edge Capital LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Blue Edge Capital LLC now owns 60,115 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $15,054,000 after purchasing an additional 1,709 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Apple by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 80,182 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $20,079,000 after purchasing an additional 1,130 shares in the last quarter. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter worth $3,461,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth about $65,000. Hedge funds and other 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.