Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stock Rating Upgraded by Sanford C. Bernstein

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) was upgraded by equities researchers at Sanford C. Bernstein from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report released on Monday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage presently has a $195.00 price objective on the iPhone maker’s stock. Sanford C. Bernstein’s target price points to a potential upside of 14.48% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on AAPL. Bank of America raised shares of Apple from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $208.00 to $225.00 in a report on Thursday, January 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Apple from $215.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. UBS Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $190.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price objective on Apple from $189.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and set a $158.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $202.62.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $170.33 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.63 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. Apple has a 12-month low of $164.07 and a 12-month high of $199.62. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $172.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $181.71.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The iPhone maker reported $2.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $119.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $117.99 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 156.04% and a net margin of 26.16%. Apple’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.88 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Apple will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total value of $18,094,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,434,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $802,392,181.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 53,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.12, for a total value of $9,262,139.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 107,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,768,046.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 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 transaction of $18,094,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,434,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $802,392,181.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 366,271 shares of company stock valued at $63,653,887 in the last ninety days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Wyrmwood Management LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 69.0% in the fourth quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc bought a new position in Apple in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC lifted its position in Apple by 118.0% during the fourth 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. boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 657.1% during the fourth 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 period. 60.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.