Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Price Target Increased to $265.00 by Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) had its target price lifted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $245.00 to $265.00 in a research report released on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the iPhone maker’s stock.

AAPL has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Melius Research upped their target price on Apple from $227.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Cfra upped their target price on Apple from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Apple from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 29th. Bank of America restated a buy rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Apple from $195.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Friday, June 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $230.09.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $217.96 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.04. Apple has a fifty-two week low of $164.07 and a fifty-two week high of $237.23. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $210.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $190.10. The company has a market capitalization of $3.34 trillion, a P/E ratio of 33.90, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.24.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $90.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.37 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 148.33% and a net margin of 26.31%. The business’s revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.52 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Apple will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 2nd that authorizes the company to buyback $110.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 10th. Apple’s payout ratio is presently 15.55%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,999 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.40, for a total transaction of $951,809.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 29,278 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,574,531.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,999 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.40, for a total value of $951,809.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 29,278 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,574,531.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.58, for a total value of $14,368,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,359,576 shares in the company, valued at $835,207,570.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc bought a new stake in Apple in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Apple by 17.9% in the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 31,278 shares during the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC increased its stake in Apple by 118.0% in the 4th quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. increased its stake in Apple by 657.1% in the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. 60.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.