171,963 Shares in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Acquired by Itau Unibanco Holding S.A.

Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 171,963 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock, valued at approximately $36,219,000. Apple comprises approximately 1.5% of Itau Unibanco Holding S.A.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Granite Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 2.7% during the second quarter. Granite Investment Partners LLC now owns 289,421 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $60,958,000 after acquiring an additional 7,606 shares during the period. Bellwether Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 387.3% during the second quarter. Bellwether Advisors LLC now owns 24,349 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $5,128,000 after purchasing an additional 19,352 shares during the last quarter. Gentry Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Apple during the second quarter worth $876,000. Independent Advisor Alliance increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.9% during the second quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 920,737 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $193,926,000 after buying an additional 8,028 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WT Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Apple in the second quarter valued at $80,057,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of AAPL opened at $226.96 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $164.07 and a 1 year high of $237.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $226.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $214.03. The stock has a market cap of $3.43 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.33, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.24.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $94.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94.52 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 152.94% and a net margin of 23.97%. The business’s revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.46 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is 16.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AAPL. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $273.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Melius Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $265.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Apple to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $205.00 to $212.92 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Moffett Nathanson initiated coverage on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, August 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $211.00 price objective for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $235.51.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other Apple news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 59,305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.52, for a total transaction of $13,433,768.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 107,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,416,137.76. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Apple news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 223,986 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.46, for a total transaction of $50,275,897.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,180 shares in the company, valued at approximately $736,269,202.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Luca Maestri sold 59,305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.52, for a total transaction of $13,433,768.60. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 107,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,416,137.76. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 412,746 shares of company stock valued at $93,021,362. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.