Apple (AAPL) Beats Stock Market Upswing: What Investors Need to Know

Apple (AAPL) ended the recent trading session at $205.17, demonstrating a +2.03% change from the preceding day's closing price. This change outpaced the S&P 500's 0.52% gain on the day. On the other hand, the Dow registered a gain of 0.63%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq increased by 0.48%. Prior to today's trading, shares of the maker of iPhones, iPads and other products had gained 0.11% lagged the Computer and Technology sector's gain of 7.56% and the S&P 500's gain of 4.27%.The investment community will be closely monitoring the performance of Apple in its forthcoming earnings report. The company is expected to report EPS of $1.41, up 0.71% from the prior-year quarter. Meanwhile, the latest consensus estimate predicts the revenue to be $88.31 billion, indicating a 2.95% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year. In terms of the entire fiscal year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates predict earnings of $7.11 per share and a revenue of $404.19 billion, indicating changes of +5.33% and +3.36%, respectively, from the former year. Additionally, investors should keep an eye on any recent revisions to analyst forecasts for Apple. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the business outlook. Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-term stock moves. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system. The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed an unchanged state. As of now, Apple holds a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). With respect to valuation, Apple is currently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 28.27. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 11.62, which means Apple is trading at a premium to the group. It's also important to note that AAPL currently trades at a PEG ratio of 2.25. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The average PEG ratio for the Computer - Micro Computers industry stood at 1.53 at the close of the market yesterday. The Computer - Micro Computers industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry, currently bearing a Zacks Industry Rank of 43, finds itself in the top 18% echelons of all 250+ industries. The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1. You can find more information on all of these metrics, and much more, on Zacks.com. Zacks Names #1 Semiconductor StockIt's only 1/9,000th the size of NVIDIA which skyrocketed more than +800% since we recommended it. NVIDIA is still strong, but our new top chip stock has much more room to boom.With strong earnings growth and an expanding customer base, it's positioned to feed the rampant demand for Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Internet of Things. Global semiconductor manufacturing is projected to explode from $452 billion in 2021 to $803 billion by 2028.See This Stock Now for Free >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Apple Inc. (AAPL): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks