Financial analyst Abhey Lamba started covering Apple for Mizuho Securities this week with a target price for the company’s stock at US$635, and a prediction that the Mac and iPhone maker’s earnings per share could hit $50 by the end of the fiscal year in September.

Mizuho Securities starts AAPL coverage

Mr. Lamba doesn’t see Apple’s winning streak ending any time soon despite increased competition from Google’s Android OS for smartphones and tablets. He also jumped on the AAPL dividend bandwagon.

“[Apple] management is now more open toward the idea [of a dividend or stock buybacks],” he said, “We estimate a buyback of about $5 billion will drive EPS higher by $0.45-0.50 while a dividend payment could diversify the mix of its current investor base, both of which should be positives for the stock.”

Along with his investor coverage of Apple, Mr. Lamba added HP and Dell to his list. He set HP’s target price at $30, and Dell’s at $20, far below his 12-month target for Apple’s stock.

Mr. Lamba’s $635 target price for Apple comes with a “Buy” rating. Apple is currently trading at $496.30, up 3.13 (0.63%).

[Thanks to Barrons for the heads up.]