Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Holdings Decreased by Braun Stacey Associates Inc.

Braun Stacey Associates Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 657,032 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 33,952 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 5.7% of Braun Stacey Associates Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Braun Stacey Associates Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $126,499,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC now owns 35,330 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $6,802,000 after acquiring an additional 1,036 shares during the last quarter. Arcadia Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Apple by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Arcadia Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,676 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $515,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Capstone Capital Wealth Advisors bought a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter worth about $582,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky grew its position in Apple by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 64,728 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $12,462,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ForthRight Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Apple by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. ForthRight Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,097 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $2,137,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL opened at $166.90 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.58 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.00, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.27. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $162.80 and a 1-year high of $199.62. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $173.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $182.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The iPhone maker reported $2.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.09. Apple had a return on equity of 156.04% and a net margin of 26.16%. The business had revenue of $119.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $117.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.88 EPS. Apple’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Investors of record on Monday, February 12th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 9th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is 14.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other 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 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 59,162 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.22, for a total transaction of $10,188,879.64. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 489,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $84,378,155.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on 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 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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 366,271 shares of company stock worth $63,653,887. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Apple from $186.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Piper Sandler Companies downgraded Apple to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $220.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Redburn Partners cut Apple to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Apple from $215.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their target price on Apple from $189.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $203.05.

Apple 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.