Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s 3rd Largest Position

Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL – Get Rating) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 60,579 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 779 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 3.1% of Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $7,871,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can bought a new position in shares of Apple during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,890,884,000. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 53.0% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 30,235,823 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $4,178,590,000 after purchasing an additional 10,471,342 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Apple by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,269,995,750 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $221,753,959,000 after acquiring an additional 8,734,393 shares in the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd bought a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,075,599,000. Finally, Swiss National Bank raised its stake in shares of Apple by 13.1% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 71,060,708 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $12,407,910,000 after acquiring an additional 8,230,300 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.60% of the company’s stock.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $174.20 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $165.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $150.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.74 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $124.17 and a 52 week high of $176.39.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 12th. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is 16.30%.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has initiated 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 purchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Apple from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 5th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Apple from $177.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 5th. Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 3rd. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on Apple from $174.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twenty-six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.74.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 56,072 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.17, for a total transaction of $9,261,412.24. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,052 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $541,766,188.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 200 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.92, for a total transaction of $32,984.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 177,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,299,192.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 56,072 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.17, for a total transaction of $9,261,412.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,052 shares in the company, valued at approximately $541,766,188.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 439,529 shares of company stock worth $71,703,657 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple 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.