Ehrlich Financial Group Boosts Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Ehrlich Financial Group lifted its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,006 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after buying an additional 102 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 0.9% of Ehrlich Financial Group’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Ehrlich Financial Group’s holdings in Apple were worth $1,030,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wyrmwood Management LLC increased its stake in Apple by 69.0% in the fourth quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. acquired a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC increased its stake in Apple by 118.0% in the fourth quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. increased its stake in Apple by 657.1% in the fourth quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at $85,000. 60.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of Apple stock opened at $220.27 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $193.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $185.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.38 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.26, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.24. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $164.07 and a twelve month high of $220.38.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $90.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $90.37 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 148.33% and a net margin of 26.31%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.52 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.55%.

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 2nd that permits the company to buyback $110.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Maxim Group upped their target price on Apple from $178.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Rosenblatt Securities upgraded Apple from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $196.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. Tigress Financial upped their price target on Apple from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Apple from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.71.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.58, for a total value of $14,368,500.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,359,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $835,207,570.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 59,162 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.22, for a total value of $10,188,879.64. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 489,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $84,378,155.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.58, for a total value of $14,368,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,359,576 shares in the company, valued at $835,207,570.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 192,355 shares of company stock worth $34,771,329. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.