Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Sapient Capital LLC’s 3rd Largest Position

Sapient Capital LLC decreased its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,400,248 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 18,885 shares during the period. Apple comprises about 6.1% of Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $311,037,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Tallon Kerry Patrick bought a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,877,000. First National Bank of Hutchinson boosted its position in Apple by 24.6% in the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $8,845,000 after purchasing an additional 6,982 shares during the last quarter. Capital & Planning LLC boosted its position in Apple by 10.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 27,298 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $6,836,000 after purchasing an additional 2,647 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Apple by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $13,544,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares during the period. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $134,554,000 after purchasing an additional 69,207 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AAPL. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, June 13th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and set a $235.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, China Renaissance initiated coverage on Apple in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $241.00 price objective for the company. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $235.27.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Apple Stock Down 1.2%

AAPL opened at $208.62 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.12 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.20. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $260.10. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $203.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $216.50. 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 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. The business had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 167.24% and a net margin of 24.30%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.53 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a $0.26 dividend. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.20%.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors 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 purchase up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.