Apple Inc. $AAPL Holdings Increased by GF Fund Management CO. LTD.

GF Fund Management CO. LTD. grew its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,500,539 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,281 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 7.8% of GF Fund Management CO. LTD.’s holdings, making the stock its largest holding. GF Fund Management CO. LTD.’s holdings in Apple were worth $333,315,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. 4J Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Apple by 3.5% in the first quarter. 4J Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,838 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $3,740,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares during the period. 44 Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Apple by 4.9% in the first quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 24,366 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $5,412,000 after purchasing an additional 1,128 shares during the period. Calamos Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Apple by 8.4% in the first quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 663,055 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $147,284,000 after purchasing an additional 51,527 shares during the period. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Apple by 10.7% in the first quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 44,757 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $9,942,000 after purchasing an additional 4,324 shares during the period. Finally, Sitrin Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Apple by 0.4% in the first quarter. Sitrin Capital Management LLC now owns 50,213 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $11,154,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL opened at $226.01 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $211.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $213.15. 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. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.35 trillion, a PE ratio of 34.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.16.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. Apple’s payout ratio is 15.78%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Apple from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $240.00 price target (up previously from $230.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Apple from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Two 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 issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $237.60.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 34,821 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total value of $7,772,047.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at $30,508,538.40. The trade was a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company 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.