JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has Lowered Expectations for Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stock Price

Key Points

• JPMorgan cut Apple’s price target from $345 to $340 while maintaining an “overweight” rating, implying roughly 12.36% upside. Analysts overall remain moderately bullish, with a consensus target of $331.60.
• Apple’s latest quarter exceeded expectations, with revenue up 16.4% year over year to $109.42 billion and EPS of $2.02 versus the $1.89 consensus estimate.
• Despite strong results, shares fell 9.2% to $302.61 amid concerns over below-consensus guidance, supply constraints, rising memory costs, weaker-than-expected Services growth and Apple’s elevated valuation.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) had its price target cut by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $345.00 to $340.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday. The brokerage currently has an "overweight" rating on the iPhone maker's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price target suggests a potential upside of 12.36% from the company's current price.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Maxim Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $350.00 price target (up from $310.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $365.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Oppenheimer restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $400.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, KGI Securities lowered Apple from an "outperform" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $315.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday, June 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $331.60.

Apple Stock Down 9.2%

Shares of AAPL stock traded down $30.82 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $302.61. 44,797,219 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 50,515,027. The company has a market cap of $4.44 trillion, a P/E ratio of 36.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Apple has a 12 month low of $201.50 and a 12 month high of $344.57. The company's 50-day moving average price is $309.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $281.25.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $109.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.57 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Apple will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total transaction of $369,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,226,770. The trade was a 3.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apple

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First National Bank of Hutchinson grew its stake in Apple by 24.6% during the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $8,845,000 after acquiring an additional 6,982 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $13,544,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $134,554,000 after purchasing an additional 69,207 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,857 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $16,742,000 after purchasing an additional 2,695 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE lifted its position in shares of Apple by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 50,264 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $12,587,000 after buying an additional 1,155 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple reported a record June quarter, with revenue of $109.4 billion, up 16% year over year, and diluted EPS of $2.02, up 29%. Results exceeded consensus estimates. Apple reports third quarter results
• Positive Sentiment: iPhone revenue surged 22% to $54.3 billion, while Mac revenue rose 29% to $10.4 billion, demonstrating resilient demand even as Apple has raised prices on some products. Apple revenue and profits beat expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s active installed base reached a record, and management highlighted long-term opportunities in consumer AI, including a more capable Siri and potential paid AI features. Several analysts maintained Buy or Overweight ratings, with targets as high as $365. Apple’s hybrid AI strategy
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple declared a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share, payable August 13 to shareholders of record August 10. The company is also launching a U.S. leasing program that could encourage more frequent device upgrades.
• Negative Sentiment: Fourth-quarter revenue guidance of $111.7 billion to $113.7 billion was below the roughly $114.3 billion consensus estimate. Management warned that “very significant” supply constraints would affect iPhones, Macs and iPads, while CEO Tim Cook described memory-price pressure as a “hundred-year flood.” Apple slides as supply snags cloud outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are concerned that rising memory costs will pressure margins and that tariff refunds, which added approximately $0.11 to quarterly EPS and benefited gross margin, will not recur. Apple is evaluating alternatives, including possible product-price increases.
• Negative Sentiment: Services revenue reached a record $30.7 billion but missed expectations, affected by foreign-exchange headwinds, weaker gaming activity and App Store changes. China performance also disappointed, adding to concerns about future growth. Apple services growth concerns
• Negative Sentiment: At approximately 40 times earnings after a sharp rally and a $5 trillion market capitalization, AAPL’s valuation leaves less room for execution or guidance disappointments. Tim Cook’s planned September departure also adds leadership-transition uncertainty.

About Apple

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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