Fiduciary Financial Group LLC Grows Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Fiduciary Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 6.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 185,072 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,551 shares during the period. Apple accounts for approximately 7.0% of Fiduciary Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $38,462,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC lifted its position in Apple by 1,800.0% during the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. Conquis Financial LLC bought a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $63,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth $65,000. Elite Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the 1st quarter worth $58,000. Finally, HFM Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Apple during the 1st quarter valued at about $99,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on AAPL. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $240.00 target price (up previously from $230.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Phillip Securities cut Apple from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating and set a $200.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Barclays boosted their target price on Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $241.93.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $238.99 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.55 trillion, a P/E ratio of 36.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $223.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $212.36. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.21 and a 12-month 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. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 170.91%. The company had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $88.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.40 earnings per share. Apple’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other 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 sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. The trade was a 20.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

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.