Why Analysts Are Chasing Apple Back Over $1 Trillion

By Chris Lange Updated Jan 30, 5:51PM EST · Published Jul 31, 12:05PM EDT

Why Analysts Are Chasing Apple Back Over $1 Trillion — © PeskyMonkey / Getty Images

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL | AAPL Price Prediction) released its fiscal third-quarter results after markets closed Tuesday, and this tech giant continued to impress investors and analysts alike. Also, this boost pushed Apple’s market cap back over the $1 trillion mark to join the club with Microsoft.

24/7 Wall St. has included some of the main highlights from the Apple earnings report, as well as what analysts are saying afterward.

The iPhone giant said that it had $2.18 in earnings per share (EPS) and $53.8 billion in revenue, compared with consensus estimates that called for $2.10 in EPS and revenue of $53.39 billion. In the third fiscal quarter of last year, Apple posted $2.34 in EPS and $53.27 billion in revenue.

In its most recent quarter, the firm reported its product sales as follows:

iPhone pulled in revenues of $29.91 billion, an increase of 20% year over year.
Mac revenues decreased by 5% to $5.33 billion.
iPad revenues decreased 5% to $4.74 billion.
Services revenues increased by 31% to $9.55 billion.
Other Products revenues increased by 37% to $3.74 billion.

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Regarding guidance for the fiscal fourth quarter, the company expects to see revenues in the range of $61 billion to $64 billion and a gross margin of 37.5% to 38.5%. The consensus estimates call for $2.67 in EPS on $61.02 billion in revenue for the quarter.

Here’s what analysts had to say after the fact:

Cowen reiterated an Outperform rating and raised its price target to $250 from $220.
Piper Jaffray reiterated an Overweight rating and raised its target to $243 from $230.
Nomura reiterated a Neutral rating and raised its target price to $185 from $180.
D.A. Davidson reiterated a Buy rating with a $270 price target.
Loop Capital reiterated a Hold rating with a $200 price objective.
Maxim Group reiterated a Hold rating with a $211 price target.
Wedbush reiterated an Outperform rating and raised its target to $245 from $235.
Monness Crespi & Hardt reiterated a Buy rating and raised its target to $265 from $245.
Canaccord Genuity reiterated a Buy rating and raised its target price to $240 from $202.
Deutsche Bank reiterated a Hold rating and raised its price target to $210 from $205.
Citigroup reiterated a Buy rating and raised its price target to $250 from $205.
Credit Suisse reiterated a Neutral rating with a $209 price objective.

Shares of Apple traded up 4% to $217.91 on Wednesday, in a 52-week range of $142.00 to $233.47. The consensus price target is $214.09.
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About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.