Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Down 0.6% - Here's What Happened

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) shares dropped 0.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $228.41 and last traded at $229.45. Approximately 9,269,097 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 59,630,438 shares. The stock had previously closed at $230.76.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $247.61 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $260.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Apple from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $205.00 to $212.92 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Maxim Group restated a "hold" rating and issued a $203.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $236.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $237.27.

Apple Stock Down 0.1 %

The firm's 50 day moving average price is $226.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $209.48. The company has a market capitalization of $3.54 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $85.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $84.43 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 147.15% and a net margin of 26.44%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.26 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 6.65 earnings per share 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 given 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 dividend yield of 0.43%. Apple's payout ratio is presently 15.55%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 223,986 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.46, for a total transaction of $50,275,897.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,180 shares of the company's stock, valued at $736,269,202.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 223,986 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.46, for a total transaction of $50,275,897.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,180 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $736,269,202.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total value of $20,644,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 517,924 shares of company stock worth $114,786,399. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apple

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bull Oak Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 252.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in Apple during the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc raised its position in shares of Apple by 88.9% during the third quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 306 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Cordant Inc. boosted its holdings in Apple by 34.3% in the third quarter. Cordant Inc. now owns 678 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $158,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Apple during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $140,000. 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.