Columbia Advisory Partners LLC Sells 142 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Columbia Advisory Partners LLC trimmed its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,384 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 142 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises approximately 1.0% of Columbia Advisory Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Columbia Advisory Partners LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $1,196,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Founders Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Apple by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Founders Capital Management LLC now owns 84,095 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $18,680,000 after acquiring an additional 1,802 shares during the last quarter. CX Institutional boosted its position in shares of Apple by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. CX Institutional now owns 189,978 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,200,000 after acquiring an additional 13,013 shares during the last quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of Apple by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 90,204 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $18,268,000 after acquiring an additional 925 shares during the last quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Apple by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 35,509 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $7,888,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Integral Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Apple by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 41,762 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $9,277,000 after acquiring an additional 1,814 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of Apple stock opened at $211.16 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $169.21 and a fifty-two week high of $260.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.15 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.20. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $203.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $217.12.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $95.36 billion during 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 quarter last year, the firm earned $1.53 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to repurchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 16.20%.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $941,420.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 4,569 shares in the company, valued at $941,214. This trade represents a 50.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total transaction of $933,940.34. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 15,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This trade represents a 22.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the topic of several research reports. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their target price on Apple to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Loop Capital cut their target price on Apple from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Apple from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $170.62 to $188.32 in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Apple currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $235.27.

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.