Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Rating Increased to Market Perform at Itau BBA Securities

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Itau BBA Securities from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report issued on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm presently has a $188.00 price objective on the iPhone maker’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $162.00. Itau BBA Securities’ target price indicates a potential upside of 2.52% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on AAPL. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price target on Apple from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Apple from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Apple from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Apple from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of Apple from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $204.00.

Apple Trading Up 6.0 %

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $183.38 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $172.17 and a 200-day moving average of $181.60. 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 cap of $2.83 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.52, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.26. Apple has a 1-year low of $164.07 and a 1-year high of $199.62.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.02. Apple had a net margin of 26.31% and a return on equity of 153.25%. The firm had revenue of $90.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.52 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Apple will post 6.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 2nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $110.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to reacquire up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In related news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred 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 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 the SEC website. In related news, 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 value of $9,244,782.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 136,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,068,376.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the company’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 in the company, valued at $802,392,181.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 366,271 shares of company stock worth $63,653,887 over the last three months. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Apple

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Conservest Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the third quarter. Conservest Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 16,802 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,877,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Flagstone Financial Management boosted its stake in Apple by 0.9% in 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 period. High Pines Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. High Pines Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,506 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,638,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Kraft Davis & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.9% in the third quarter. Kraft Davis & Associates LLC now owns 6,716 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,155,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Planning Corporation boosted its position in shares of Apple by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Asset Planning Corporation now owns 6,135 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,181,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 60.41% 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.