Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp restated a hold rating and set a $247.61 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Piper Sandler restated a neutral rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Wedbush reiterated an outperform rating and set a $285.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, September 9th. New Street Research reissued a neutral rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler Companies reaffirmed a neutral rating and issued a $225.00 price target (up previously from $190.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $238.76.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL opened at $226.80 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $222.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $204.06. Apple has a 1 year low of $164.07 and a 1 year high of $237.23. The company has a market capitalization of $3.48 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.24.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 the consensus estimate of $84.43 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.26 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Apple will post 6.7 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.55%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other Apple news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 223,986 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.46, for a total transaction of $50,275,897.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,180 shares in the company, valued at $736,269,202.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total transaction of $20,644,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 191,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,542,136.92. This represents 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 worth $101,352,630. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Apple

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the first quarter valued at about $35,000. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. increased its position in Apple by 657.1% in the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $82,000 after buying an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $85,000. 60.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.