ERTS Wealth Advisors LLC Lowers Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

ERTS Wealth Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 92.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,407 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 17,414 shares during the period. Apple makes up 0.1% of ERTS Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. ERTS Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $289,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. First National Bank of Hutchinson raised its position in Apple by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $8,845,000 after purchasing an additional 6,982 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $13,544,000 after buying an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $134,554,000 after buying an additional 69,207 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,857 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $16,742,000 after acquiring an additional 2,695 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE raised its holdings in Apple by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 50,264 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $12,587,000 after acquiring an additional 1,155 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Stock Down 0.7%

Apple stock opened at $278.78 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $169.21 and a fifty-two week high of $288.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.89. The company has a market capitalization of $4.12 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.32, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $266.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $234.07.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The iPhone maker reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.11. Apple had a return on equity of 164.05% and a net margin of 26.92%.The firm had revenue of $102.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $101.65 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.64 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 10th were issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 10th. Apple’s payout ratio is presently 13.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on AAPL. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and issued a $315.00 price target (up from $245.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Barclays lifted their price target on Apple from $180.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.09.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 47,125 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $11,071,116.07. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at $35,181,866.93. The trade was a 23.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 228,052 shares of company stock worth $58,604,588 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

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.