Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Rating Lowered to Strong Sell at Jefferies Financial Group

Key Points

• Apple has been downgraded from a "moderate sell" to a "strong sell" rating by Jefferies Financial Group, indicating a significant change in analyst sentiment.
• Despite the downgrade, several other analysts maintain positive outlooks, with ratings ranging from "hold" to "outperform" and an average price target of $252.47.
• Insider trading activity saw the CFO sell a considerable amount of shares, with total transactions exceeding $65 million over the last 90 days, raising concerns about insider confidence in the company.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from a "moderate sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on AAPL. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley set a $298.00 target price on shares of Apple and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $240.00 target price (up previously from $230.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $252.47.

Apple Trading Up 0.2%

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $262.77 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.90 trillion, a PE ratio of 39.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Apple has a 52-week low of $169.21 and a 52-week high of $265.29. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $242.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $217.74.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $88.64 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%.The business's revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.40 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Apple will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,199 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.39, for a total transaction of $1,038,790.61. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 8,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,168,373.35. The trade was a 32.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 47,125 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.79, for a total value of $12,101,228.75. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 179,158 shares in the company, valued at $46,005,982.82. This trade represents a 20.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 259,121 shares of company stock worth $65,358,981 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apple

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Capstone Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,537 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,174,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Baker Boyer National Bank lifted its stake in Apple by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Baker Boyer National Bank now owns 18,011 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,695,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Beddow Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Apple by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Beddow Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,597 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $533,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Uncommon Cents Investing LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Uncommon Cents Investing LLC now owns 10,609 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,701,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Salus Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Salus Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,310 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $291,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is 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.

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