Williams Financial LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Williams Financial LLC grew its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 234.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,035 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,127 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises approximately 0.5% of Williams Financial LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Williams Financial LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $674,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC now owns 13,815 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $3,260,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Apple by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 16,910 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $4,235,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA raised its position in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 16,682 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $4,178,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC now owns 15,940 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $3,992,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Disciplined Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Disciplined Investments LLC now owns 7,166 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,794,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Stock Up 5.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $213.12 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $205.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $213.24. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.21 and a 12-month high of $260.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.16 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Apple announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $100.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on AAPL. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on shares of Apple from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Scotiabank downgraded shares of Apple to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $240.00 target price (up previously from $230.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $237.25.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the firm’s 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 directly owned 15,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This trade represents a 22.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

About Apple

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.