Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Down 2.7% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Apple's stock price fell by 2.7% to $227.94, with trading volume down 53% compared to the average daily volume.
• Equities analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy” for Apple, with target prices ranging from $180.00 to $255.00.
• Apple recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, with a yield of 0.5% and a payout ratio of 15.78%.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report)'s share price fell 2.7% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $227.35 and last traded at $227.94. 26,520,381 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 53% from the average session volume of 56,568,313 shares. The stock had previously closed at $234.35.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on AAPL. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on Apple from $223.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday. Melius Research set a $290.00 target price on Apple and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on Apple from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $240.80.

Apple Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.47 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a 50-day moving average of $221.50 and a 200-day moving average of $212.20.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is presently 15.78%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total transaction of $7,772,047.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,508,538.40. This trade represents a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ryan Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Apple during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% during the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at $63,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 333.3% during the second quarter. Nexus Investment Management ULC now owns 260 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at $65,000. 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.