Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Holdings Decreased by Asset Management Advisors LLC

Asset Management Advisors LLC lessened its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 45,967 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 530 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises approximately 7.3% of Asset Management Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Asset Management Advisors LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $8,850,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $9,208,000. Windmill Hill Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $339,000. White Pine Investment CO raised its position in Apple by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. White Pine Investment CO now owns 45,630 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $8,785,000 after purchasing an additional 1,090 shares during the period. Dearborn Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 766,306 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $147,537,000 after purchasing an additional 9,392 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bernardo Wealth Planning LLC boosted its position in shares of Apple by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Bernardo Wealth Planning LLC now owns 37,750 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $7,268,000 after buying an additional 568 shares during the period. 60.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $183.38 on Friday. 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 Inc. has a 1 year low of $164.07 and a 1 year high of $199.62. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $172.17 and a 200-day moving average of $181.60. The company has a market cap of $2.83 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.26.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its earnings results 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 analysts’ expectations of $90.37 billion. Apple had a net margin of 26.31% and a return on equity of 153.25%. Apple’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.52 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 6.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, May 2nd that permits the company to buyback $110.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the iPhone maker to repurchase up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 16th. Investors of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,434,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $802,392,181.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Apple news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 99,183 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.03, for a total value of $16,864,085.49. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,377,407 shares in the company, valued at $574,260,512.21. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on 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 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 366,271 shares of company stock valued at $63,653,887 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on AAPL. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted 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. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Apple from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 29th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Apple from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Apple from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $204.00.

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.