Global Assets Advisory LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Global Assets Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 113.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 113,190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 60,128 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 4.7% of Global Assets Advisory LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Global Assets Advisory LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $25,143,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Apple by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,395,785,512 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $349,532,608,000 after buying an additional 49,168,843 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Apple by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 340,164,913 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $84,999,145,000 after buying an additional 6,307,413 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $46,868,648,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Apple by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,918,365,000 after buying an additional 20,079,472 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Apple by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 104,706,358 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $26,220,566,000 after buying an additional 13,137,968 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL stock opened at $202.92 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $205.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $213.24. The stock has a market cap of $3.01 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.16. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.21 and a 1 year high of $260.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $88.64 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 170.91%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.40 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 11th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.78%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total transaction of $933,940.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 15,533 shares in the company, valued at $3,233,815.27. This represents a 22.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AAPL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Apple from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Apple from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Scotiabank lowered shares of Apple to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $237.25.

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.