Financial Advisors Network Inc. Buys 6,857 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Financial Advisors Network Inc. boosted its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 12.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 62,141 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,857 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up 2.3% of Financial Advisors Network Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Financial Advisors Network Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $13,803,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $46,868,648,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Apple during the first quarter valued at approximately $17,472,482,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 25,934.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 60,066,398 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $133,425,490,000 after acquiring an additional 59,835,676 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Apple by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,395,785,512 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $349,532,608,000 after acquiring an additional 49,168,843 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Apple by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $42,918,365,000 after purchasing an additional 20,079,472 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Apple Stock Down 3.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $226.79 on Thursday. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $169.21 and a 52-week high of $260.10. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $220.75 and a 200 day moving average of $212.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.37 trillion, a PE ratio of 34.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.87.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly 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 net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 170.91%. The business had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.40 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.78%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

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 shares were sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total transaction of $7,772,047.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at $30,508,538.40. This represents a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on AAPL shares. Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday. HSBC set a $220.00 price target on shares of Apple and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Moffett Nathanson upgraded shares of Apple from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $242.16.

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.