Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Price Target Raised to $215.00

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) had its price objective lifted by Canaccord Genuity Group from $200.00 to $215.00 in a report published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. Canaccord Genuity Group currently has a buy rating on the iPhone maker’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on AAPL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday. Oppenheimer reiterated an outperform rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Bank of America raised their price target on Apple from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday. Maxim Group initiated coverage on Apple in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. They issued a hold rating and a $178.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Apple from $210.00 to $216.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $204.11.

Apple Trading Up 6.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $183.38 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.83 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.52, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.26. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $172.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $181.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. Apple has a 52-week low of $164.07 and a 52-week high of $199.62.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $90.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.37 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 153.25% and a net margin of 26.31%. The business’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.52 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Apple will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 16th. Investors of record on Monday, May 13th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.93%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 99,183 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.03, for a total value of $16,864,085.49. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,377,407 shares in the company, valued at $574,260,512.21. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 99,183 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.03, for a total value of $16,864,085.49. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,377,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $574,260,512.21. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Luca Maestri sold 53,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.12, for a total transaction of $9,262,139.28. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 107,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,768,046.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 366,271 shares of company stock worth $63,653,887 over the last 90 days. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. Wyrmwood Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 69.0% during the 4th quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc bought a new stake in Apple in the first quarter worth $35,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC increased its position in Apple by 118.0% during the fourth quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new position in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. lifted its position in shares of Apple by 657.1% in the fourth quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. 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.