Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Receives “Buy” Rating from Needham & Company LLC

Needham & Company LLC reiterated their buy rating on shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) in a research report report published on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has a $220.00 price target on the iPhone maker’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Maxim Group raised their target price on Apple from $178.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Apple from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Apple from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. UBS Group reiterated a neutral rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an overweight rating and set a $216.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. One equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $215.71.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $221.55 on Monday. Apple has a fifty-two week low of $164.07 and a fifty-two week high of $221.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.40 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.46, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.24. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $195.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $185.85.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $90.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.37 billion. Apple had a net margin of 26.31% and a return on equity of 148.33%. Apple’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.52 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Apple will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 10th. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 15.55%.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,999 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.40, for a total value of $951,809.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 29,278 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,574,531.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,999 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.40, for a total value of $951,809.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 29,278 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,574,531.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 59,162 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.22, for a total value of $10,188,879.64. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now 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 ninety days, insiders sold 192,355 shares of company stock valued at $34,771,329. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Conservest Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Apple by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Conservest Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 16,802 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,877,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Flagstone Financial Management grew its stake in Apple by 0.9% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Hoese & Co LLP increased its holdings in Apple by 6.7% in the second quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 912 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $175,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. High Pines Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Planning Corporation lifted its holdings in Apple by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Asset Planning Corporation now owns 6,135 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,181,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.