Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Trading Up 0.5% After Strong Earnings

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 0.5% on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $212.95 and last traded at $213.64. Approximately 13,356,191 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 56,398,759 shares. The stock had previously closed at $212.50.

The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 160.83%. The company had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.53 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is a boost from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.87%.

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to repurchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Apple from $259.00 to $256.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Apple from $236.00 to $210.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $225.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday. Redburn Partners set a $230.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated an "underperform" rating and issued a $170.62 price objective (up previously from $167.88) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Apple has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $235.17.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.67, for a total value of $8,683,316.74. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 179,158 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $40,072,269.86. This trade represents a 17.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total value of $24,184,616.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at $733,637,976.75. This represents a 3.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 187,021 shares of company stock valued at $41,760,140. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apple

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. Latitude Advisors LLC increased its position in Apple by 0.3% in the third quarter. Latitude Advisors LLC now owns 17,236 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $4,016,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Sensible Financial Planning & Management LLC. purchased a new stake in Apple in the third quarter worth $1,577,000. Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC increased its stake in Apple by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC now owns 49,489 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $11,531,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. Values Added Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the third quarter. Values Added Financial LLC now owns 26,561 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $6,189,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sitrin Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 31.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sitrin Capital Management LLC now owns 50,501 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $11,767,000 after purchasing an additional 11,936 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Trading Down 3.7 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a market capitalization of $3.08 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.26. The stock's 50 day moving average is $212.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $228.61.

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.