FY2027 EPS Estimates for Apple Lifted by Erste Group Bank

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) – Stock analysts at Erste Group Bank increased their FY2027 earnings per share estimates for Apple in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, February 18th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel now expects that the iPhone maker will post earnings per share of $9.34 for the year, up from their prior forecast of $9.32. The consensus estimate for Apple’s current full-year earnings is $7.28 per share.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $143.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $138.25 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.04% and a return on equity of 159.94%. The company’s revenue was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.40 EPS.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 9th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $350.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $292.13.

Apple Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $272.14 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market cap of $4.00 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a 50 day moving average of $264.79 and a 200-day moving average of $258.74. Apple has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $288.62.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.15%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. First National Bank of Hutchinson increased its holdings in Apple by 24.6% during the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $8,845,000 after buying an additional 6,982 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $13,544,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $134,554,000 after acquiring an additional 69,207 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,857 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $16,742,000 after purchasing an additional 2,695 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 50,264 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $12,587,000 after purchasing an additional 1,155 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple will shift some Mac Mini production to a Foxconn plant in Houston and expand U.S. manufacturing capacity, supporting supply-chain resilience and political/geographic diversification. This underpins revenue predictability and reduces single‑country concentration risk. Apple to move some Mac Mini production to U.S. this year
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholders re-elected Apple’s board and approved company proposals at the 2026 annual meeting, signaling continued investor confidence in management and governance continuity. Apple Shareholders Reelect Board and Approve 2026 Proposals
• Positive Sentiment: Prominent investors/strategists are overweight Apple — Seeking Alpha highlights a large-conviction allocation and notes buybacks as an upside support mechanism, which can boost EPS and investor sentiment. Why Daily Stock Picks’ Gary Vaughan Likes Large Cap Tech (And Energy)
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are eyeing Apple’s March 4 product event (iPhone 17E, new MacBooks, etc.) as a potential revenue catalyst; successful launches historically lift sentiment ahead of earnings. Should You Buy Apple Stock Before Its New Product Launch on March 4?
• Neutral Sentiment: New crypto derivatives (tokenized perpetual futures) list Apple as an underlying, widening ways for international traders to gain 24/7 leveraged exposure — may increase trading flows but not company fundamentals. Kraken debuts tokenized stock perpetual futures for non-US traders
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage is mixed but skewed bullish on balance (multiple buy/outperform ratings and a median 6‑12 month target above current levels); that supports momentum but leaves room for dispersion. Apple Stock: Is AAPL Underperforming the Technology Sector?
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing concerns about Apple’s slower rollout of AI features into Siri (and competition from Alphabet/others) are flagged as a meaningful growth risk if services/AI monetization lags peers. This “Siri-ous” Problem Could Be the Biggest Threat to Apple Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Geopolitical supply‑chain risk remains elevated after reporting that U.S. intelligence briefed executives on potential China‑Taiwan scenarios — any escalation would threaten Taiwan-based fabs that supply Apple chips. The Reason Tim Cook ‘Sleeps With One Eye Open’

About Apple

Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) is a multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, founded in 1976 by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. The company designs, develops and sells consumer electronics, software and services. Over its history Apple has evolved from personal computers to a broad portfolio that spans mobile devices, wearables, home entertainment and digital services.

Apple’s principal hardware products include the iPhone smartphone, iPad tablet, Mac personal computers, Apple Watch wearable devices and a range of accessories such as AirPods and HomePod.