Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Given “Outperform” Rating at Wedbush

Wedbush reaffirmed their outperform rating on shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) in a research note released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $350.00 price target on the iPhone maker’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on AAPL. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $325.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, January 30th. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Barclays boosted their target price on Apple from $239.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane raised Apple from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $303.06.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $266.17 on Tuesday. Apple has a fifty-two week low of $193.25 and a fifty-two week high of $288.62. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $259.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $264.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market cap of $3.91 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.11.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.17. Apple had a return on equity of 159.94% and a net margin of 27.04%.The business had revenue of $143.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $138.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.40 EPS. Apple’s revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Apple will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.15%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 30,002 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total transaction of $7,661,010.70. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $34,934,433.50. This represents a 17.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, 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 transaction of $16,511,984.27. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,280,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $833,980,668.14. The trade was a 1.94% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. Isthmus Partners LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 97,177 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 5,808 shares in the last quarter. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 110.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. purchased a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 1,800.0% in the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple promoted Johny Srouji to chief hardware officer and consolidated hardware leadership, signaling faster in‑house silicon development and tighter integration across iPhone and Mac — a tailwind for margins and product differentiation. Apple’s elevation of Johny Srouji
• Positive Sentiment: China demand is improving: reports show a large year‑over‑year jump in iPhone shipments in China, supporting near‑term revenue and offsetting some macro worries. China iPhone shipments jump 20%
• Positive Sentiment: Several Wall Street firms reaffirm bullish views (including high price targets) arguing the succession preserves continuity while positioning Apple to leverage hardware + AI — a reason some investors view any dip as a buying opportunity. Analyst reactions and price targets
• Neutral Sentiment: Succession is orderly: Tim Cook will become executive chairman and the board approved the internal promotion, which reduces governance risk versus an external hire. That provides continuity but not an immediate strategic shift. Apple Appoints John Ternus CEO
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s recent quarterly results and revenue beat still underpin the company’s valuation; earnings coming at month‑end remain an important catalyst. Post‑Cook future and earnings outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction is cautious: headlines emphasizing Apple’s AI “gap” and whether a hardware executive can accelerate AI services have driven selling pressure and wider implied option ranges. WSJ on challenges for John Ternus
• Negative Sentiment: Short‑term technical and derivatives signals: unusual put activity and expanded post‑announcement volatility suggest traders are hedging or betting on a wider post‑transition trading range. Unusual put options activity
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory risk: Apple’s withholding of data in an India antitrust probe remains an unresolved legal overhang that could lead to fines or restrictions in a large market. India antitrust case

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.