Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Sold by Beacon Capital Management LLC

Beacon Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,118 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 284 shares during the period. Apple makes up about 1.4% of Beacon Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Beacon Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $10,078,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Ryan Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the second quarter valued at $31,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% in the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the first quarter valued at $58,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at $65,000. Finally, HFM Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the first quarter valued at $99,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Up 0.0%

AAPL opened at $247.77 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $239.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $216.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.87. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $260.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.68 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.09.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its earnings results 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 return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%.The business had revenue of $94.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $88.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 43,013 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,181,866.93. This trade represents a 23.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 129,963 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.81, for a total value of $33,375,798.03. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,280,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $842,412,558.95. This represents a 3.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 254,922 shares of company stock worth $64,320,190. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AAPL. Phillip Securities cut Apple from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Barclays increased their price objective on Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Loop Capital cut their price target on Apple from $230.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities raised their price target on Apple from $223.00 to $241.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $248.29.

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.