Advisors Asset Management Inc. Sells 1,143 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Advisors Asset Management Inc. cut its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 533,254 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 1,143 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 2.2% of Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $118,452,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,868,648,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Apple during the first quarter valued at approximately $17,472,482,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Apple by 25,934.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 60,066,398 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $133,425,490,000 after purchasing an additional 59,835,676 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Apple by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,395,785,512 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $349,532,608,000 after purchasing an additional 49,168,843 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Apple by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,918,365,000 after purchasing an additional 20,079,472 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $234.07 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.21 and a 1 year high of $260.10. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $221.50 and a 200-day moving average of $212.39. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $3.47 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.11.

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. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 170.91%. The firm had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $88.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.40 EPS. Apple’s revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 34,821 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were 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 owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at $30,508,538.40. The trade was a 20.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AAPL shares. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday. Moffett Nathanson raised Apple from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 4th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Monday. 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. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $240.80.

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.