Poplar Forest Capital LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Poplar Forest Capital LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL – Get Rating) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,650 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 126 shares during the quarter. Poplar Forest Capital LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $1,644,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. IFM Investors Pty Ltd boosted its stake in Apple by 20.0% during the first quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 2,615,701 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $456,728,000 after buying an additional 435,891 shares during the period. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. lifted its stake in Apple by 0.4% during the first quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. now owns 240,628 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $42,016,000 after purchasing an additional 1,040 shares during the last quarter. Markel Corp lifted its stake in Apple by 0.7% during the first quarter. Markel Corp now owns 1,206,990 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $210,752,000 after purchasing an additional 8,450 shares during the last quarter. Camden Capital LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 9.2% during the first quarter. Camden Capital LLC now owns 156,364 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $27,305,000 after purchasing an additional 13,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Island Capital LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 0.3% during the first quarter. Harbor Island Capital LLC now owns 135,325 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $23,629,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. 57.60% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AAPL. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, February 6th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on Apple from $173.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 5th. National Bank Financial reduced their price target on Apple to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Apple from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 19th. Finally, UBS Group set a $180.00 target price on Apple in a report on Monday, April 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Apple has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.74.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,092 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.26, for a total value of $708,979.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,946 shares in the company, valued at $5,881,483.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,092 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.26, for a total transaction of $708,979.92. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 33,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,881,483.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 187,730 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.76, for a total transaction of $29,991,744.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 489,816 shares in the company, valued at approximately $78,253,004.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 439,529 shares of company stock valued at $71,703,657. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $175.05 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $164.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $150.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The company has a market capitalization of $2.75 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.29. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $124.17 and a 12-month high of $176.15.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 4th. The iPhone maker reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.08. Apple had a net margin of 24.49% and a return on equity of 165.72%. The business had revenue of $94.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $92.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.52 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 5.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 12th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.30%.

Apple declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $90.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Apple, Inc engages in the design, manufacture, and sale of smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables and accessories, and other varieties of related services. It operates through the following geographical segments: Americas, Europe, Greater China, Japan, and Rest of Asia Pacific. The Americas segment includes North and South America.