Clean Yield Group Lowers Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Clean Yield Group trimmed its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 86,760 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 255 shares during the period. Apple comprises about 7.0% of Clean Yield Group’s investment portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Clean Yield Group’s holdings in Apple were worth $16,704,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Conservest Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Apple by 0.3% in the third quarter. Conservest Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 16,802 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $2,877,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. High Pines Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. High Pines Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,506 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,638,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Kraft Davis & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Kraft Davis & Associates LLC now owns 6,716 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,155,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Asset Planning Corporation lifted its holdings in Apple by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Asset Planning Corporation now owns 6,135 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,181,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Columbus Macro LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 11,224 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,120,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. 60.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total value of $9,244,782.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 136,572 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,068,376.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Apple news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 59,162 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.22, for a total value of $10,188,879.64. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 489,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $84,378,155.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total value of $9,244,782.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 136,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,068,376.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 366,271 shares of company stock valued at $63,653,887 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AAPL has been the subject of several research reports. DA Davidson initiated coverage on Apple in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $166.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Apple from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Maxim Group initiated coverage on Apple in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. They set a “hold” rating and a $178.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Apple from $186.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Apple from $215.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 11th. One investment 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 given 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 Price Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $169.30 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $164.07 and a 12-month high of $199.62. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $173.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $181.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The stock has a market cap of $2.61 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.37, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.27.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its 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 analysts’ expectations of $117.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.88 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

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

About Apple

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.