Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stock Holdings Lowered by Scott Capital Advisors LLC

Scott Capital Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,760 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 61 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 0.2% of Scott Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Scott Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $835,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Drystone LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $63,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $82,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $211.18 on Friday. 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 price-to-earnings ratio of 32.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.20. The company’s fifty day moving average is $204.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $215.85. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $169.21 and a 52-week high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 167.24%. The company had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.53 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. 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 dividend yield of 0.49%. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 16.20%.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the iPhone maker to reacquire up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on AAPL shares. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Raymond James Financial reduced their price target on shares of Apple from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. China Renaissance started coverage on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $241.00 price target for the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price target on shares of Apple to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $235.11.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other Apple news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $941,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 4,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $941,214. The trade was a 50.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

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.