Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Given “Buy” Rating at Citigroup

Citigroup restated their buy rating on shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning, Stock Target Advisor reports. The firm currently has a $255.00 price target on the iPhone maker’s stock.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on AAPL. Raymond James upped their target price on Apple from $200.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an overweight rating and issued a $265.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Moffett Nathanson initiated coverage on Apple in a research note on Monday, August 19th. They issued a neutral rating and a $211.00 price target for the company. DA Davidson upgraded shares of Apple from a neutral rating to a buy rating and boosted their target price for the company from $200.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Apple from $195.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $238.76.

Apple Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of AAPL opened at $226.80 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.48 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.27, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.24. Apple has a 52 week low of $164.07 and a 52 week high of $237.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.95. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $222.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $203.86.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.06. Apple had a return on equity of 147.15% and a net margin of 26.44%. The company had revenue of $85.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.43 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.26 EPS. Apple’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Apple will post 6.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total value of $20,644,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Apple news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 61,019 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.20, for a total value of $13,802,497.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 187,043 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $42,309,126.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total value of $20,644,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 458,619 shares of company stock valued at $101,352,630. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Apple in the second quarter valued at $42,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc acquired a new position in Apple in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. purchased a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. lifted its position in Apple by 657.1% during the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 368 shares during the period. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $85,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.