Blue Square Asset Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Blue Square Asset Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,838 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 145 shares during the period. Apple makes up about 2.7% of Blue Square Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Blue Square Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $5,073,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Elite Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Apple in the first quarter valued at $58,000. Conquis Financial LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at $63,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at $65,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at $82,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 34,821 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. This represents a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Apple from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Monday. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $240.00 price objective (up previously from $230.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $266.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $237.37.

Apple Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $232.56 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $260.10. The firm has a market cap of $3.45 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.16. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $215.17 and a 200-day moving average of $213.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

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

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share 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 repurchase 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 stock is undervalued.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.78%.

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.