Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Trading 1.1% Higher – Should You Buy?

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s share price rose 1.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $315.43 and last traded at $313.45. 33,404,507 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 34% from the average session volume of 50,335,809 shares. The stock had previously closed at $309.90.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple scheduled its major iPhone launch event for September 9, the first such event under CEO John Ternus. Analysts expect new iPhones and Apple Watches, with a potential foldable iPhone serving as a major catalyst. Apple sets Sept. 9 date for next iPhone launch event
• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s foldable strategy is generating significant interest, with IDC reportedly forecasting more than 17 million foldable iPhone shipments by 2027. A successful launch could reinvigorate iPhone growth and expand Apple’s premium-device market. Apple Seen to Ship Over 17 Million Foldable iPhones by 2027
• Positive Sentiment: New Mac mini and Mac Studio models powered by the M6 and M5 Ultra chips are aimed at AI developers and support substantially greater on-device computing capacity. This strengthens Apple’s capital-light AI strategy and could boost Mac demand, developer adoption and services opportunities. Apple announces new Mac Mini and Mac Studio models with AI upgrades
• Positive Sentiment: Evercore ISI reiterated its Outperform rating and maintained a $365 price target, saying higher Mac mini pricing is justified by the upgraded capabilities. Apple Stock Reiterated as Outperform

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on AAPL shares. KGI Securities cut shares of Apple from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $315.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, August 17th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Apple from $364.00 to $360.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $330.53.

Apple Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.00. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $311.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $287.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.57 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.09.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $109.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 135.46%. Apple’s revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.57 EPS. Analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,425,754.82. This represents a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.49, for a total transaction of $442,478.11. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 38,668 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,890,023.32. The trade was a 3.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 2,994 shares of company stock worth $919,567 over the last 90 days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Apple

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. First National Bank of Hutchinson raised its holdings in shares of 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 raised its holdings in Apple by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $13,544,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Apple by 14.8% during the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Apple by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,857 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $16,742,000 after buying an additional 2,695 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 50,264 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $12,587,000 after purchasing an additional 1,155 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

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.