Buffington Mohr McNeal Trims Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Buffington Mohr McNeal decreased its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 12.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 53,639 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 7,681 shares during the period. Apple comprises about 2.3% of Buffington Mohr McNeal’s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Buffington Mohr McNeal’s holdings in Apple were worth $11,915,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $63,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $82,000. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $96,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the topic of several recent research reports. China Renaissance initiated coverage on Apple in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $241.00 price target on the stock. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Loop Capital cut their price target on Apple from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price target on Apple from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $237.60.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $230.56 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $210.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $213.06. 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 Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $260.10. The company has a market cap of $3.42 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.16.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.78%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 34,821 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total transaction of $7,772,047.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,508,538.40. This represents a 20.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.