Apple Inc. $AAPL is Palisade Capital Management LP’s 6th Largest Position

Palisade Capital Management LP decreased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 237,266 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 7,162 shares during the period. Apple makes up about 1.5% of Palisade Capital Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Palisade Capital Management LP’s holdings in Apple were worth $52,704,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,877,000. First National Bank of Hutchinson increased its holdings in Apple by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $8,845,000 after acquiring an additional 6,982 shares in the last quarter. Capital & Planning LLC raised its position in Apple by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 27,298 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $6,836,000 after acquiring an additional 2,647 shares during the period. Eagle Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $13,544,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $134,554,000 after purchasing an additional 69,207 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Apple from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $270.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $237.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 34,821 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at $30,508,538.40. This represents a 20.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Apple Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $226.01 on Thursday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $3.35 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $211.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $213.15.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.64 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.40 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

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

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

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.