Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Sold by Ashford Capital Management Inc.

Ashford Capital Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 5.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,053 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 223 shares during the period. Ashford Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $1,015,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,732,000. Lantern Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Apple by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. Lantern Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 43,644 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $10,930,000 after buying an additional 4,418 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 104,706,358 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $26,220,566,000 after acquiring an additional 13,137,968 shares in the last quarter. US Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. US Financial Advisors LLC now owns 14,056 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $3,520,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares during the period. Finally, USS Investment Management Ltd raised its stake in shares of Apple by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 2,755,130 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $689,912,000 after acquiring an additional 94,498 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Down 1.4%

AAPL stock opened at $195.64 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.92 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.47, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.22. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $260.10. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $202.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $222.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 167.24%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.53 EPS. Research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to buyback $100.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is 16.20%.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 35,493 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.01, for a total value of $7,950,786.93. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 390,059 shares in the company, valued at $87,377,116.59. This trade represents a 8.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total transaction of $24,184,616.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $733,637,976.75. This trade represents a 3.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 191,507 shares of company stock valued at $42,694,080. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Sunday, June 1st. Rosenblatt Securities cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $217.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Apple from $270.00 to $245.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.86.

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.