Short Interest in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Drops By 6.3%

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 101,910,000 shares, a decline of 6.3% from the March 31st total of 108,780,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 60,990,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.7 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were 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 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 through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 136,572 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,068,376.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the company’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 transaction of $18,094,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 have sold 366,271 shares of company stock valued at $63,653,887 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wyrmwood Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 69.0% in the 4th quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc acquired a new stake in Apple during the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC raised its stake in Apple by 118.0% during the 4th quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. acquired a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. grew its position in Apple by 657.1% during the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. 60.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Performance

Apple stock opened at $169.30 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $173.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $181.83. Apple has a 1-year low of $164.07 and a 1-year high of $199.62. 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 market cap of $2.61 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.27.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on AAPL shares. Redburn Partners lowered Apple to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. DA Davidson started coverage on Apple in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $166.00 price target for the company. Redburn Atlantic lowered Apple from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. 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 research report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $203.05.

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.