Apple Inc. $AAPL Stake Decreased by LGT Capital Partners LTD.

LGT Capital Partners LTD. cut its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 3.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 525,525 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 19,454 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up approximately 5.2% of LGT Capital Partners LTD.’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. LGT Capital Partners LTD.’s holdings in Apple were worth $116,735,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at about $63,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at about $65,000. Elite Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Apple during the first quarter valued at about $58,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at about $82,000. Finally, Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at about $147,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 34,821 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $30,508,538.40. This trade represents a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Apple Stock Down 0.0%

AAPL stock opened at $239.69 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The company’s 50 day moving average is $219.28 and its 200 day moving average is $212.86. The stock has a market cap of $3.56 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.11. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $260.10.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.78%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on AAPL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $266.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Apple from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley set a $240.00 price target on shares of Apple and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $240.00 price target (up from $230.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, August 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $239.05.

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.