Intelligence Driven Advisers LLC Increases Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Intelligence Driven Advisers LLC increased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 73,767 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,591 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises 2.3% of Intelligence Driven Advisers LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Intelligence Driven Advisers LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $15,135,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC grew its holdings in Apple by 1,800.0% during the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter valued at about $47,000. Elite Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Apple during the 1st quarter valued at about $58,000. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter valued at about $63,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter valued at about $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $252.31 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $227.04 and a 200 day moving average of $212.78. The company has a market capitalization of $3.74 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.29, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.11. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $260.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Apple’s payout ratio is presently 15.78%.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 34,821 shares of Apple stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,508,538.40. The trade was a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on AAPL shares. Bank of America lifted their target price on Apple from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. Melius Research set a $290.00 price target on Apple and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. HSBC set a $220.00 price target on Apple and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Phillip Securities downgraded Apple from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating and set a $200.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $244.66.

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.