Fermata Advisors LLC Sells 2,358 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Fermata Advisors LLC decreased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 78,816 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 2,358 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 3.6% of Fermata Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Fermata Advisors LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $15,174,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wyrmwood Management LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 69.0% in the fourth quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Apple during the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC grew its position in Apple by 118.0% during the fourth quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Cheyne Capital Management UK LLP grew its position in Apple by 200.0% during the third quarter. Cheyne Capital Management UK LLP now owns 275 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $212,000 after buying an additional 550 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HBC Financial Services PLLC grew its position in Apple by 21.7% during the first quarter. HBC Financial Services PLLC now owns 448 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $168.00 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $175.57 and a 200-day moving average of $182.21. The company has a market cap of $2.59 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.27. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $162.80 and a one year high of $199.62.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The iPhone maker reported $2.18 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $119.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $117.99 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 156.04% and a net margin of 26.16%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.88 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 6.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 12th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 9th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays reduced their target price on Apple from $160.00 to $158.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $189.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $225.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, February 16th. DZ Bank reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Piper Sandler Companies cut Apple to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $220.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Apple currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $203.34.

Insider Activity

In other Apple news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total transaction of $18,094,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,434,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $802,392,181.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total transaction of $9,244,782.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 136,572 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,068,376.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total value of $18,094,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,434,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $802,392,181.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 366,271 shares of company stock worth $63,653,887 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Company Profile

Apple Inc designs, manufactures, and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and accessories worldwide. The company offers iPhone, a line of smartphones; Mac, a line of personal computers; iPad, a line of multi-purpose tablets; and wearables, home, and accessories comprising AirPods, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Beats products, and HomePod.