Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Eastern Bank’s 3rd Largest Position

Eastern Bank reduced its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 441,414 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 733 shares during the period. Apple comprises 3.9% of Eastern Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Eastern Bank’s holdings in Apple were worth $84,985,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Axim Planning & Wealth purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at about $232,000. Fiduciary Planning LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 18.9% in the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Planning LLC now owns 11,414 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,198,000 after purchasing an additional 1,817 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. increased its holdings in Apple by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 143,777 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $27,681,000 after purchasing an additional 3,533 shares during the period. Altus Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Apple by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Altus Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,405 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,426,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LA Financiere DE L Echiquier lifted its holdings in Apple by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. LA Financiere DE L Echiquier now owns 11,008 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,119,000 after buying an additional 946 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $183.38 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $164.07 and a 12-month high of $199.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.83 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $172.15 and a 200 day moving average of $181.57.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $90.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.37 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 156.04% and a net margin of 26.16%. Apple’s revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.52 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 6.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 2nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $110.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. Apple’s payout ratio is presently 14.95%.

Insider Activity

In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total transaction of $9,244,782.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 136,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,068,376.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 136,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,068,376.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were 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 $802,392,181.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 366,271 shares of company stock valued at $63,653,887 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on AAPL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Apple from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Loop Capital dropped their target price on shares of Apple from $185.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Apple from $186.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Redburn Partners cut Apple to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $203.72.

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.