Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Down 1.2% – Here’s Why

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s stock price was down 1.2% on Monday . The company traded as low as $212.17 and last traded at $210.89. Approximately 11,455,817 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 78% from the average daily volume of 52,895,230 shares. The stock had previously closed at $213.49.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on AAPL shares. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Maxim Group increased their target price on shares of Apple to $215.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Apple to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $243.65.

Apple Stock Down 0.6 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $233.31 and its 200-day moving average is $233.60. The stock has a market cap of $3.20 trillion, a P/E ratio of 33.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 160.83%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.87%.

Institutional Trading of Apple

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. O Connor Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. O Connor Financial Group LLC now owns 3,578 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $896,000 after buying an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Apple by 0.5% in the third quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 9,654 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,249,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 1.3% in the third quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,489 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $813,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC now owns 13,815 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $3,260,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Menard Financial Group LLC raised its position in Apple by 0.4% during the third quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 12,221 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $2,848,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. 67.73% 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.