Oppenheimer Increases Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Price Target to $250.00

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) had its target price hoisted by Oppenheimer from $200.00 to $250.00 in a report published on Friday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the iPhone maker’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on AAPL. Maxim Group upped their target price on shares of Apple from $178.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Apple from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 29th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on Apple from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Saturday, May 4th. UBS Group reaffirmed a neutral rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on Apple from $195.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $215.71.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $210.62 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.23 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.76, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.99. Apple has a one year low of $164.07 and a one year high of $220.20. The business has a fifty day moving average of $192.13 and a 200 day moving average of $185.31.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.02. Apple had a return on equity of 148.33% and a net margin of 26.31%. The business had revenue of $90.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.52 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple will post 6.59 EPS for the current year.

Apple declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 2nd that authorizes the company to buyback $110.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to reacquire up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.47%. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.55%.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 53,194 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.12, for a total transaction of $9,262,139.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 107,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,768,046.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 107,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,768,046.56. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 59,162 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.22, for a total value of $10,188,879.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 489,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $84,378,155.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 247,087 shares of company stock worth $44,016,111. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wyrmwood Management LLC increased its position in Apple by 69.0% during the 4th quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc bought a new position in Apple in the first quarter worth approximately $35,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Apple by 17.9% in the first quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 31,278 shares in the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC boosted its position in Apple by 118.0% during the 4th quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.