Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stock Jumps 2.4% – Time to Buy?

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s stock price shot up 2.4% during mid-day trading on Monday. The company traded as high as $352.33 and last traded at $350.69. Approximately 46,944,029 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 4% from the average daily volume of 48,754,289 shares. The stock had previously closed at $342.37.

More Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple reported quarterly revenue of $114.48 billion and EPS of $2.10, exceeding analyst estimates; revenue grew 11.7% year over year, with double-digit growth in hardware and services. Corporate Earnings Breadth Near-Record Highs, But Cracks Emerge at the Margins
• Positive Sentiment: Apple Intelligence cleared a Chinese regulatory step for use on tablets and laptops, opening a path to broader availability in a major market. Apple Intelligence AI service registers with Chinese regulator
• Positive Sentiment: Apple has begun selling $49.99 add-on packs for extra usage of certain Creator Studio AI features. The move could create a new revenue stream from AI services and support the view that Apple can monetize AI without heavy infrastructure spending. Apple Starts Charging $49.99 for Extra AI Usage
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO John Ternus is reportedly urging executives to accelerate Apple’s AI roadmap, including more capable Siri features. Faster progress could improve Apple’s competitive position, but execution and timing remain uncertain. Apple CEO Pushes for Greater Progress on AI
• Negative Sentiment: Reports of a memory-chip cost squeeze raise concerns about pressure on iPhone margins. Some commentary also flags Apple’s valuation as demanding, and Phillip Securities reportedly cut its rating to “Moderate Sell.” Bank of America Is Doubling Down on Apple While Tech Sells Off

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Daiwa Securities Group raised their price target on shares of Apple from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. China Renaissance downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $329.00 to $280.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Apple from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Raymond James Financial reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Apple from $245.00 to $261.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $343.74.

Apple Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $336.01 and its 200 day moving average is $298.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.10 trillion, a PE ratio of 39.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.07.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $2.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.11. Apple had a return on equity of 125.35% and a net margin of 27.60%. The company had revenue of $114.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $113.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.85 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 9.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 12th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 12th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 12.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 46,389 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.42, for a total transaction of $15,467,020.38. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 136,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,615,190.20. This trade represents a 25.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO John Ternus sold 25,412 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.94, for a total transaction of $8,460,671.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 59,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,832,236.98. This represents a 29.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last three months, insiders sold 291,651 shares of company stock valued at $97,082,537. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 12,187,343 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $4,058,630,000 after buying an additional 283,318 shares during the period. SGL Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.3% in the third quarter. SGL Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 38,182 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $13,072,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. U S Wealth Group LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.8% in the third quarter. U S Wealth Group LLC. now owns 27,370 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $9,115,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the period. Ground Swell Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Apple during the third quarter valued at $250,000. Finally, Pettee Investors Inc. increased its position in Apple by 0.4% during the third quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. now owns 29,847 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $9,940,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Apple

Apple Inc designs, manufactures and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its products include the iPhone, Mac computers, iPad, Apple Watch and AirPods, along with operating systems and applications such as iOS, macOS and iPadOS.

The company also offers services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, iCloud and Apple Pay. These products and services are integrated across Apple’s devices and are sold to consumers, businesses and institutions around the world.

Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Cupertino, California, Apple serves customers globally through online and retail stores, wireless carriers and other resellers.