Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Sold by Investment Partners Asset Management Inc.

Investment Partners Asset Management Inc. trimmed its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 35,945 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 392 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises approximately 5.1% of Investment Partners Asset Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its largest position. Investment Partners Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $7,375,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ryan Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Apple during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $65,000. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Apple during the 1st quarter valued at $58,000. Finally, HFM Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Apple during the 1st quarter valued at $99,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on shares of Apple from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Rosenblatt Securities raised their price objective on shares of Apple from $223.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, September 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $290.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. 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 report on Friday, August 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $248.29.

Apple Stock Down 3.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $245.27 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $260.10. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $237.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $215.92. 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 market cap of $3.64 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.09.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.78%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 129,963 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.81, for a total value of $33,375,798.03. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $842,412,558.95. This trade represents a 3.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 47,125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.79, for a total transaction of $12,101,228.75. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 179,158 shares in the company, valued at $46,005,982.82. This represents a 20.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 254,922 shares of company stock valued at $64,320,190. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.