Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Bought by Joule Financial LLC

Joule Financial LLC raised its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 75.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,850 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,507 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up approximately 0.5% of Joule Financial LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Joule Financial LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $1,299,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AAPL. Drystone LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $63,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $65,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $82,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $213.36 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $3.19 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.20. 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 twelve month low of $169.21 and a twelve month high of $260.10. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $203.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $218.44.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.20%.

Apple declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the iPhone maker to reacquire up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Barclays set a $173.00 price target on Apple and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Rosenblatt Securities cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $217.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on Apple to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.95.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total transaction of $933,940.34. Following the transaction, the insider owned 15,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This represents a 22.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 4,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $941,214. The trade was a 50.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.