Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Trading Up 3.6% - Here's Why

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) shares traded up 3.6% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $208.00 and last traded at $206.91. 17,942,614 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 68% from the average session volume of 56,661,491 shares. The stock had previously closed at $199.74.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wedbush dropped their price target on Apple from $325.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Apple from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $202.33 to $167.88 in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $263.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Apple from $270.00 to $245.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $233.88.

Apple Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.14 trillion, a P/E ratio of 33.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.26. The company's 50 day moving average is $215.71 and its 200-day moving average is $229.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $941,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 4,569 shares in the company, valued at $941,214. This represents a 50.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 35,493 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.01, for a total transaction of $7,950,786.93. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 390,059 shares in the company, valued at $87,377,116.59. The trade was a 8.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 187,021 shares of company stock valued at $41,760,140 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. O Connor Financial Group LLC raised its position in Apple by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. O Connor Financial Group LLC now owns 3,578 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $896,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Apple by 0.5% in the third quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 9,654 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,249,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC grew its holdings in Apple by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC now owns 13,815 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,260,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Menard Financial Group LLC increased its position in Apple by 0.4% in the third quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 12,221 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $2,848,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Apple by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 3,775 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $945,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% 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.