Lewis Asset Management LLC Takes $13.32 Million Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Lewis Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 69,162 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock, valued at approximately $13,316,000. Apple accounts for approximately 12.2% of Lewis Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Derbend Asset Management grew its stake in Apple by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Derbend Asset Management now owns 45,133 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $8,689,000 after purchasing an additional 1,720 shares in the last quarter. Insight Advisors LLC PA grew its stake in Apple by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Insight Advisors LLC PA now owns 104,853 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $20,187,000 after purchasing an additional 549 shares in the last quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Apple by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 250,217 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $48,174,000 after purchasing an additional 1,321 shares in the last quarter. Regency Capital Management Inc. DE grew its stake in Apple by 111.9% in the fourth quarter. Regency Capital Management Inc. DE now owns 4,004 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $771,000 after purchasing an additional 2,114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Visionary Horizons LLC bought a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth approximately $908,000. Institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,434,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $802,392,181.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 53,194 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.12, for a total value of $9,262,139.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 107,788 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,768,046.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available 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 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 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $169.89 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $173.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $181.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.62 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.46, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.27. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $162.80 and a fifty-two week high of $199.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.07.

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

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Investors 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 Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on AAPL shares. Maxim Group began coverage on Apple in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $178.00 price objective on the stock. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on Apple from $189.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Loop Capital lowered their target price on Apple from $185.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 1st. Bank of America upgraded Apple from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $208.00 to $225.00 in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Finally, DZ Bank restated a “hold” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, March 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.