Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stock Price Down 2.5% - Here's Why

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) shares traded down 2.5% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $193.46 and last traded at $196.36. 33,078,298 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 41% from the average session volume of 55,982,043 shares. The stock had previously closed at $201.36.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AAPL shares. Redburn Partners set a $230.00 target price on Apple in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $170.62 price objective (up from $167.88) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Argus raised Apple to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Apple from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt dropped their price target on shares of Apple from $260.00 to $245.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $235.80.

Apple Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $204.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $225.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.99 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.78, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. The company had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.53 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple's payout ratio is currently 16.20%.

Apple announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.67, for a total transaction of $8,683,316.74. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 179,158 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $40,072,269.86. This represents a 17.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $733,637,976.75. This trade represents a 3.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 191,507 shares of company stock worth $42,694,080. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Amara Financial LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at $288,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in Apple in the third quarter valued at about $4,972,000. SYM FINANCIAL Corp grew its position in Apple by 6.3% in the third quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 28,626 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $6,670,000 after acquiring an additional 1,695 shares during the last quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Apple by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 21,198 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $5,308,000 after acquiring an additional 1,779 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Berkshire Bank raised its stake in Apple by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 89,580 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $22,433,000 after acquiring an additional 2,360 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.