Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Price Target Raised to $215.00 at Maxim Group

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) had its price objective lifted by analysts at Maxim Group to $215.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday, Stock Target Advisor reports. The brokerage presently has a “hold” rating on the iPhone maker’s stock. Maxim Group’s target price would indicate a potential downside of 12.57% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on AAPL. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $236.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price objective on shares of Apple to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Apple to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 20th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Apple from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $211.84 to $200.75 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Apple to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $242.52.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL traded up $0.07 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $245.90. The company had a trading volume of 6,676,386 shares, compared to its average volume of 52,110,660. The company has a market cap of $3.69 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.99, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The company has a fifty day moving average of $240.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $232.29. Apple has a 12-month low of $164.07 and a 12-month high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Apple will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.97, for a total value of $24,997,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 389,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $97,474,301.68. The trade was a 20.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apple

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Drystone LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Bull Oak Capital LLC lifted its position in Apple by 252.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Apple during the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,000. Conquis Financial LLC bought a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter worth about $63,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Company Profile

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.