Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Sold by Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC

Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC cut its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 161,908 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 1,754 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up 10.0% of Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $40,545,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 10,061,591 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,344,351,000 after purchasing an additional 332,081 shares during the last quarter. Hollow Brook Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Apple by 2.7% in the third quarter. Hollow Brook Wealth Management LLC now owns 57,981 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $13,510,000 after purchasing an additional 1,515 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. increased its position in Apple by 83.7% during the third quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 277,720 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $64,709,000 after buying an additional 126,522 shares during the last quarter. Harris Associates L P raised its holdings in Apple by 0.8% during the third quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 128,731 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $29,994,000 after buying an additional 1,068 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harmony Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 1.6% during the third quarter. Harmony Asset Management LLC now owns 74,175 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $17,283,000 after buying an additional 1,149 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $203.92 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.05 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.21 and a 12-month high of $260.10. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $201.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $224.12.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. The business had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.53 EPS. Apple’s revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. This is an increase from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 16.20%.

Apple declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AAPL. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on Apple from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Citigroup reissued a “cautious” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, May 5th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Sunday, June 1st. Finally, China Renaissance started coverage on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $241.00 target price on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $235.02.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $941,420.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $941,214. The trade was a 50.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total value of $933,940.34. Following the sale, the insider now owns 15,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This trade represents a 22.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 191,507 shares of company stock valued at $42,694,080. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.