Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Acquired by Settian Capital LP

Settian Capital LP lifted its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL – Get Rating) by 10.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 70,900 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after buying an additional 6,700 shares during the period. Apple makes up about 8.1% of Settian Capital LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Settian Capital LP’s holdings in Apple were worth $9,212,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Forza Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,082,000. Sentinel Pension Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Apple by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Sentinel Pension Advisors Inc. now owns 11,200 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,455,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Martin & Co. Inc. TN raised its holdings in Apple by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Martin & Co. Inc. TN now owns 66,582 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $8,651,000 after purchasing an additional 933 shares in the last quarter. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,237,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in Apple by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 159,949 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $20,773,000 after purchasing an additional 5,548 shares in the last quarter. 57.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on AAPL. UBS Group set a $180.00 target price on Apple in a report on Monday, April 3rd. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price target on Apple from $174.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 5th. Bank of America upped their price target on Apple from $173.00 to $176.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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, Cowen dropped their price target on Apple from $200.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twenty-seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.74.

Apple Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $175.16 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.76 trillion, a P/E ratio of 29.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.29. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $164.84 and its 200-day moving average is $150.58. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $124.17 and a 52-week high of $176.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.94.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 15th were given a $0.24 dividend. This is an increase from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 12th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.30%.

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, May 4th that allows the company to buyback $90.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,092 shares of the 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 sale, the insider now owns 33,946 shares in the company, valued at $5,881,483.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.92, for a total value of $32,984.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 177,657 shares in the company, valued at $29,299,192.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,092 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 8th. The stock was 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 approximately $5,881,483.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 439,529 shares of company stock worth $71,703,657. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Company Profile

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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.