Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Up 1% – Time to Buy?

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) traded up 1% on Friday. The company traded as high as $334.54 and last traded at $333.69. 31,852,724 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 35% from the average daily volume of 49,141,023 shares. The stock had previously closed at $330.32.

Apple News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s new product cycle is supporting revenue expectations. Morgan Stanley modestly raised its revenue forecast, while Counterpoint Research projects roughly 6 million sales of the company’s first foldable iPhone Duo this year. Strong initial iPhone demand in China also provides a near-term sales catalyst. Apple’s Fall Product Cycle Could Support Revenue Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s push beyond the iPhone is attracting investor interest. New Apple Watch health features, a redesigned Health app and potential smart-home products using Siri and Apple Intelligence could strengthen its wearables and connected-device ecosystems. Apple Is Betting Improved Heart and Health Insights Will Boost Watch Sales
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley cut its price target to $355 from $360 but maintained an Overweight rating. Higher memory and component costs, along with possible iPhone pricing pressure, are expected to offset much of the revenue benefit from the product launches. Morgan Stanley Adjusts Price Target on Apple
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple remains a widely followed, highly valued technology stock. Institutional ownership is substantial, and several investment firms increased their positions recently; however, analyst ratings have become more mixed after the stock’s strong advance. Apple Is a Trending Stock
• Negative Sentiment: A jury’s $5.7 billion patent verdict involving Apple’s Taptic Engine raises concern about potential ongoing royalties and pressure on hardware margins, making the long-term financial impact more important than the one-time payment. Apple’s $5.7 Billion Patent Verdict Raises a Bigger Royalty Question
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are increasingly concerned that AI agents from competitors such as Meta could bypass Apple’s App Store and weaken its high-margin services model. Analysts also see limited upside without a new earnings catalyst after the recent rally. Apple Stock’s Upside May Be Limited as AI Agents Could Disrupt Business
• Negative Sentiment: Apple SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares valued at approximately $806,496, reducing her direct holdings by 5.4%. The sale is modest relative to her remaining stake but adds a minor insider-selling signal. Apple Insider Transaction Filing

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. China Renaissance cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $329.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $400.00 target price on Apple and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Finally, Phillip Securities increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, September 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $340.02.

Apple Trading Up 1.0%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.87 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.27, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.07. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $322.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $299.78.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. Apple had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 135.46%. The firm had revenue of $109.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.57 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $336.18, for a total transaction of $806,495.82. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 41,992 shares in the company, valued at $14,116,870.56. This trade represents a 5.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 13,430 shares of company stock valued at $4,342,255 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. GoalVest Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 704.5% during the third quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 109,223 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $36,373,000 after buying an additional 95,646 shares during the period. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its stake in Apple by 19.1% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 13,166 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $4,385,000 after purchasing an additional 2,115 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 29.4% during the third quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 158,616 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $50,807,000 after buying an additional 36,029 shares during the period. Burkett Financial Services LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 9.1% in the 3rd quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC now owns 15,278 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $5,076,000 after acquiring an additional 1,278 shares during the period. Finally, Hickory Point Bank & Trust raised its stake in Apple by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hickory Point Bank & Trust now owns 10,829 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $3,606,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Apple Company Profile

Apple Inc is a technology company that designs, develops and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its best-known products include the iPhone smartphone, Mac personal computers, iPad tablets, Apple Watch, AirPods and other accessories. The company also develops operating systems and software platforms, including iOS, macOS, iPadOS, watchOS and visionOS.

Apple’s services business includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, Apple Fitness+ and iCloud.