Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Trading 6.6% Higher on Earnings Beat

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s share price was up 6.6% during mid-day trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $187.00 and last traded at $184.51. Approximately 67,264,407 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 11% from the average daily volume of 60,859,910 shares. The stock had previously closed at $173.03.

The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.02. Apple had a net margin of 26.16% and a return on equity of 156.04%. The business had revenue of $90.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.37 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.52 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.95%.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, May 2nd that permits the company to repurchase $110.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Friday. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Apple from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Bank of America increased their price target on Apple from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $196.00 price objective (up previously from $189.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has 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 price target of $203.72.

Insider Activity

In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total transaction of $9,244,782.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 136,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,068,376.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total value of $9,244,782.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 136,572 shares in the company, valued at $23,068,376.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total value of $18,094,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,434,576 shares in the company, valued at $802,392,181.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 366,271 shares of company stock valued at $63,653,887. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Apple

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headinvest LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Headinvest LLC now owns 53,155 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $9,236,000 after purchasing an additional 872 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 75,110 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $14,461,000 after buying an additional 10,425 shares during the last quarter. DNB Asset Management AS raised its stake in Apple by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 4,307,068 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $829,240,000 after buying an additional 279,311 shares in the last quarter. Boltwood Capital Management raised its stake in Apple by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 37,178 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $7,158,000 after buying an additional 1,021 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Private Wealth Partners LLC now owns 673,349 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $115,284,000 after buying an additional 24,634 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Trading Up 6.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.83 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.56, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $172.15 and a 200-day moving average price of $181.57.

About Apple

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.