Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Down 2.8%

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) fell 2.8% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $213.92 and last traded at $216.27. 21,938,469 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 64% from the average session volume of 60,694,457 shares. The stock had previously closed at $222.50.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on AAPL shares. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $273.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Maxim Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $203.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, DA Davidson upgraded shares of Apple from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $200.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $239.17.

Apple Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $223.14 and a 200-day moving average of $198.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The stock has a market cap of $3.31 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.24.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.06. Apple had a net margin of 26.44% and a return on equity of 147.15%. The company had revenue of $85.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $84.43 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.26 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 6.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 8,706 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total transaction of $1,958,850.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 15,419 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,469,275. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Chris Kondo sold 8,706 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total value of $1,958,850.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,419 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,469,275. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total transaction of $20,644,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 191,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 113,884 shares of company stock worth $23,723,887 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the first quarter worth about $35,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Apple by 17.9% in the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 31,278 shares during the period. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. purchased a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Apple during the second quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. lifted its stake in Apple by 657.1% in the fourth quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $82,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

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.