Ignite Planners LLC Decreases Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Ignite Planners LLC trimmed its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 71,190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 517 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises 3.8% of Ignite Planners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Ignite Planners LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $17,324,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bull Oak Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 252.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in Apple in the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc grew its holdings in Apple by 88.9% during the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 306 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the period. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda acquired a new stake in Apple during the 3rd quarter worth $71,000. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the 3rd quarter valued at $77,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AAPL. Loop Capital cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $230.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Apple to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $253.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson set a $290.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $325.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $244.85.

Apple Stock Up 0.6 %

AAPL stock opened at $247.10 on Tuesday. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $164.07 and a twelve month high of $260.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $240.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $233.12. The company has a market cap of $3.71 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.20.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. Analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.40%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.87%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.97, for a total transaction of $24,997,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 389,944 shares in the company, valued at $97,474,301.68. The trade was a 20.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple 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.