In the latest market close, Apple (AAPL) reached $239.07, with a +1.59% movement compared to the previous day. The stock outperformed the S&P 500, which registered a daily gain of 0.55%. On the other hand, the Dow registered a gain of 0.52%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq increased by 0.7%.
Prior to today’s trading, shares of the maker of iPhones, iPads and other products had gained 0.9% over the past month. This has outpaced the Computer and Technology sector’s loss of 8.51% and the S&P 500’s loss of 5.56% in that time.
Investors will be eagerly watching for the performance of Apple in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company is forecasted to report an EPS of $1.61, showcasing a 5.23% upward movement from the corresponding quarter of the prior year. Simultaneously, our latest consensus estimate expects the revenue to be $93.67 billion, showing a 3.22% escalation compared to the year-ago quarter.
For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $7.27 per share and revenue of $406.63 billion, which would represent changes of +7.7% and +3.99%, respectively, from the prior year.
Investors should also take note of any recent adjustments to analyst estimates for Apple. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. As a result, upbeat changes in estimates indicate analysts’ favorable outlook on the company’s business health and profitability.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. To utilize this, we have created the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model that integrates these estimate changes and provides a functional rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), possesses a remarkable history of outdoing, externally audited, with #1 stocks returning an average annual gain of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, there’s been a 0.1% fall in the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate. Apple is currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
With respect to valuation, Apple is currently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 32.36. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 12.06, which means Apple is trading at a premium to the group.
We can additionally observe that AAPL currently boasts a PEG ratio of 2.34. The PEG ratio is akin to the commonly utilized P/E ratio, but this measure also incorporates the company’s anticipated earnings growth rate. By the end of yesterday’s trading, the Computer – Micro Computers industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.58.
