Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Sold by Banyan Capital Management Inc.

Banyan Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 41,835 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 830 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 4.4% of Banyan Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Banyan Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $8,583,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ryan Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Apple during the second quarter valued at $31,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% during the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at about $47,000. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 1st quarter valued at about $58,000. Finally, Conquis Financial LLC acquired a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter worth about $63,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Apple in a report on Monday, September 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $290.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target 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. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Apple from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $223.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $247.49.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 47,125 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.79, for a total value of $12,101,228.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 179,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,005,982.82. The trade was a 20.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 43,013 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.39, for a total transaction of $11,071,116.07. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,181,866.93. This trade represents a 23.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 254,922 shares of company stock worth $64,320,190. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $258.02 on Monday. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $169.21 and a fifty-two week high of $260.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.87. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $233.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $214.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.83 trillion, a P/E ratio of 39.15, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.09.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.40 EPS. Apple’s revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Apple 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.