NBC Securities Inc. Increases Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

NBC Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 97,579.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 135,775 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 135,636 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for about 2.6% of NBC Securities Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. NBC Securities Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $30,159,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Drystone LLC bought a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Conquis Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $63,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $82,000. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $96,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Apple Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of Apple stock opened at $201.08 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $202.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $220.03. The company has a market cap of $3.00 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.32, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.21 and a 12-month high of $260.10.

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

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $0.26 dividend. This is an increase from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.20%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 35,493 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 390,059 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,377,116.59. This trade represents a 8.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at $733,637,976.75. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 191,507 shares of company stock worth $42,694,080 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Apple from $245.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Loop Capital reduced their target price on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Tigress Financial upped their target price on shares of Apple from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, China Renaissance began coverage on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $241.00 price target for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $234.39.

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.