FY2027 EPS Estimates for Apple Increased by Erste Group Bank

Key Points

• Erste Group Bank raised its FY2027 EPS estimate for Apple to $9.49 from $9.31, signaling improved long-term earnings expectations. That still sits above the current consensus estimate of $8.74 per share.
• Apple’s latest quarterly results beat expectations, with EPS of $2.01 versus $1.95 expected and revenue of $111.18 billion versus $109.46 billion forecast. Revenue also rose 16.6% year over year.
• Sentiment on Apple remains broadly positive, with multiple analysts maintaining or raising price targets and the stock carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating. However, the company still faces legal and regulatory overhangs alongside recent insider selling.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) - Analysts at Erste Group Bank upped their FY2027 earnings estimates for shares of Apple in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, May 5th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel now expects that the iPhone maker will earn $9.49 per share for the year, up from their previous estimate of $9.31. The consensus estimate for Apple's current full-year earnings is $8.74 per share.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.The company had revenue of $111.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.65 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on Apple from $268.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays restated an "underweight" rating and set a $253.00 price objective (up from $248.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group set a $296.00 target price on shares of Apple and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Scotiabank set a $330.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $305.74.

Apple Stock Down 0.0%

AAPL opened at $293.25 on Monday. Apple has a 12 month low of $193.46 and a 12 month high of $294.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market cap of $4.31 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.06. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $261.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $266.04.

Institutional Trading of Apple

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter worth about $52,266,468,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Apple during the first quarter valued at about $17,472,482,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. lifted its stake in Apple by 890.7% during the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 41,984,810 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $11,413,990,000 after buying an additional 37,746,784 shares in the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 20,464.8% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27,069,029 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $5,553,753,000 after buying an additional 26,937,401 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $387,749,545,000 after buying an additional 26,856,752 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other Apple news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total value of $16,511,984.27. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,280,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $833,980,668.14. This represents a 1.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $421,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 13,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,675,650. This trade represents a 10.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 96,485 shares of company stock valued at $24,594,845 over the last 90 days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. Apple's payout ratio is currently 12.58%.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush lifted Apple’s price target to $400 and said AI could drive a major growth wave for AAPL. Apple price target boosted by Wedbush on AI monetization expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple reached a preliminary chip-making deal with Intel boosted confidence in Apple’s manufacturing strategy and supply chain flexibility. Apple, Intel Have Reached Preliminary Chip-Making Agreement
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see WWDC as a potential inflection point, with upcoming AI-related software features seen as a possible catalyst for Apple’s next leg higher. Apple’s biggest bull is now calling for a 37% stock jump
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple remains near its recent highs after strong quarterly results, keeping investor expectations elevated ahead of the next catalyst. Dow Jones Futures: Market At Highs With Iran, Trump-Xi Summit In Focus; Apple, Nvidia, Boeing In Buy Areas
• Negative Sentiment: Apple also faces ongoing legal and regulatory noise, including a Siri settlement and App Store antitrust disputes, which could weigh on sentiment if they escalate. Apple promised a smarter Siri, but a lawsuit says it didn’t deliver—and you can get up to $95 back

Apple Company Profile

Apple Inc NASDAQ: AAPL is a multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, founded in 1976 by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. The company designs, develops and sells consumer electronics, software and services. Over its history Apple has evolved from personal computers to a broad portfolio that spans mobile devices, wearables, home entertainment and digital services.

Apple's principal hardware products include the iPhone smartphone, iPad tablet, Mac personal computers, Apple Watch wearable devices and a range of accessories such as AirPods and HomePod.

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