Apple Could Debut Stock Buyback, Dividend This month: Analyst

Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray expects Apple to announce a moderate increase in its stock repurchase program alongside its quarterly dividends during the earnings call scheduled for April 23 (via AppleInsider).

The analyst believes that investors should get Apple stock, and he has several reasons for that: First, looking at the forthcoming earnings call and the numbers the company is expected to report, he believes the figures will be on the higher side of the company’s guidance. Wall Street analysts generally expect Apple to report revenues of $43.5 billion for the past quarter.

Looking ahead toward the next quarter, Munster says Apple will grow 10% on a year-over-year basis. His own estimates call for Apple to grow 5% in the next quarter, but investors will focus on the product updates for the second half of 2014.

Another reason why Munster believes that investors should buy Apple stock is the forthcoming product launches. The analyst has high hopes for the second half of this year, when the company is widely expected to launch the iPhone 6 and the new iPad (maybe even the iWatch?).