Apple's (AAPL) "Hold (C+)" Rating Reiterated at Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• Apple's stock has a "hold (C+)" rating reiterated by Weiss Ratings, while other analysts like BMO Capital Markets and Bank of America have a more bullish outlook with "buy" ratings.
• The stock rose by 1.6% to reach $263.71 during trading, with market analysts projecting an earnings per share of 7.28 for the current fiscal year.
• CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 129,963 shares of Apple stock recently, indicating a 3.81% decrease in his ownership position.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold (c+)" rating reiterated by Weiss Ratings in a research report issued on Friday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on AAPL. BMO Capital Markets restated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday. Bank of America upped 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. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Apple to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. Four investment 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 given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $252.47.

Apple Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of Apple stock traded up $4.13 during trading on Friday, reaching $263.71. 15,118,350 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 56,001,906. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $243.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $218.56. Apple has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $265.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.91 trillion, a PE ratio of 40.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.09.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 firm had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.64 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 170.91%. The business's revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.40 EPS. As a group, 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, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 129,963 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.81, for a total transaction of $33,375,798.03. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,280,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $842,412,558.95. This trade represents a 3.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 43,013 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.39, for a total transaction of $11,071,116.07. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at $35,181,866.93. This trade represents a 23.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 259,121 shares of company stock valued at $65,358,981 in the last 90 days. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Ryan Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Apple during the second quarter worth $31,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC grew its stake in Apple by 1,800.0% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Nexus Investment Management ULC lifted its holdings in Apple by 333.3% during the 2nd quarter. Nexus Investment Management ULC now owns 260 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Elite Financial Inc. bought a new position in Apple during the 1st quarter worth approximately $58,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Hedge funds and other 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.

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