Wedbush Affirms "Outperform" Rating for Apple with $300 Price Target

On Friday, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) received a positive endorsement from Wedbush, a well-known investment firm, which restated its "outperform" rating for the tech giant. In their research note, analysts at Wedbush set a price target of $300.00 for Apple's stock. This target suggests a potential increase of approximately 27.28% from the stock's current trading price.

Recent Analyst Recommendations

Various other research firms have also recently commented on Apple’s stock. For instance, New Street Research retained a "neutral" rating, setting a price target of $225.00 in a report dated September 25. Meanwhile, KeyCorp downgraded Apple shares from a "sector weight" to an "underweight" rating with a target price of $200.00 as reported on October 25. StockNews.com took a similar stance, moving their rating from "buy" to "hold" on November 1.

In contrast, the Goldman Sachs Group has been more bullish, increasing its price target on Apple from $265.00 to $275.00, maintaining a "buy" rating as reflected in an August 2 report. Additionally, Piper Sandler reiterated their "neutral" stance with the same $225.00 price goal as noted on October 9, showcasing the mixed opinions among analysts regarding Apple's future performance.

Overall, Apple currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts. Data from MarketBeat.com highlights that two analysts have issued a sell rating, twelve have a hold rating, while twenty-two analysts have given it a buy rating. There is also one strong buy rating attributed to the company, with an average target price of $235.68.

Apple's Recent Stock Performance

As of Friday's trading session, Apple’s stock experienced a slight increase of $0.77, culminating in a price of $235.70. The trading volume was reported at 4,477,961 shares, significantly lower than its average volume of 57,984,566 shares. Over the past year, Apple’s shares have fluctuated between a low of $164.07 and a high of $237.49. Important moving averages include a fifty-day average priced at $228.83, and a 200-day average at $219.23. The company maintains a market capitalization of $3.56 trillion, with a P/E ratio of 38.77 and a beta of 1.24.

Earnings Report Highlights

Recently, Apple disclosed its quarterly earnings report on October 31, revealing earnings per share of $1.64, surpassing expectations of $1.60 by a small margin. The company reported a net margin of 23.97% and an impressive return on equity of 152.94%. Apple reported revenues of $94.93 billion for the quarter, marginally exceeding the predictions of $94.52 billion, and marking a 6.1% increase compared to the same period last year. Analysts forecast Apple will achieve an EPS of 7.43 for the current year.

Insider Trading Activity

In insider-related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 223,986 shares of Apple stock on October 2 at an average price of $224.46, totaling approximately $50.28 million. Following this sale, Cook retains ownership of 3,280,180 shares valued at over $736 million. Additionally, CFO Luca Maestri sold 59,305 shares on October 4 for about $13.43 million. This indicates a significant reduction in their respective stock holdings.

In total, insiders have sold approximately 408,170 shares worth $92 million over the last quarter, suggesting ongoing activity among the company's upper management.

Institutional Interest in Apple Stocks

Several significant investors have also adjusted their stakes in Apple recently. For example, State Street Corp increased its position by 10.6%, now holding 584 million shares worth approximately $136 billion. FMR LLC also raised its stake by 5.3%, owning around 363 million shares valued at approximately $84 billion. Geode Capital Management expanded its holdings by 6.5%, bringing its total to about 334 million shares, and Charles Schwab Investment Management grew its shareholding by 6.6% with approximately 95 million shares.

Moreover, International Assets Investment Management has drastically increased its position by 20,372.7%, now holding over 94 million shares valued at around $219 billion. Notably, institutional investors control approximately 60.41% of Apple's stock, emphasizing the strong interest from large players in the financial markets.

A Brief Overview of Apple Inc.

Apple Inc. is renowned for designing, manufacturing, and marketing a wide range of products including smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and accessories. The company’s flagship products include the iPhone series, the Mac line of personal computers, iPads, and various wearables and accessories like Apple Watch, AirPods, and Apple TV.

Apple, Wedbush, Rating