Blue Trust Inc. Raises Stock Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 176,304 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,443 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 0.4% of Blue Trust Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $36,172,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Avid Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Apple by 28.3% during the first quarter. Avid Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,211 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $935,000 after buying an additional 930 shares during the period. Bell & Brown Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Apple by 0.4% during the first quarter. Bell & Brown Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 62,001 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $13,772,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the period. American National Bank & Trust grew its position in Apple by 2.4% during the second quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 195,482 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $40,107,000 after buying an additional 4,543 shares during the period. Andina Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Apple by 209.2% in the first quarter. Andina Capital Management LLC now owns 6,786 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,507,000 after purchasing an additional 4,591 shares during the period. Finally, Plum Street Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Apple by 4.0% in the first quarter. Plum Street Advisors LLC now owns 7,889 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,752,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $270.14 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.01 trillion, a PE ratio of 40.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.08. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $250.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $223.70. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.21 and a 1 year high of $277.32.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The iPhone maker reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $102.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.65 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 170.91%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.64 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 13th. Investors of record on Monday, November 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 10th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 43,013 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.39, for a total value of $11,071,116.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at $35,181,866.93. This trade represents a 23.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 47,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.79, for a total value of $12,101,228.75. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 259,121 shares of company stock valued at $65,358,981 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on AAPL. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Apple from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 1st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Melius upped their price target on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $300.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $278.22.

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.