Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC Sells 6,753 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC lowered its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.1% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 310,783 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 6,753 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 4.8% of Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $53,293,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of AAPL. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc purchased a new position in Apple during the first quarter worth approximately $35,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 118.0% during the 4th quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. boosted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth about $85,000. 60.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Price Performance

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $226.40 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $219.82 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $193.92. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $164.07 and a 52 week high of $237.23. The stock has a market cap of $3.47 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.06. Apple had a return on equity of 145.35% and a net margin of 26.44%. The firm had revenue of $85.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.43 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.26 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 6.61 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 15.55%.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, May 2nd that allows the company to buyback $110.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AAPL shares. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $210.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Apple from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $205.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. DA Davidson raised shares of Apple from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $200.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on Apple from $195.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $233.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, insider Chris Kondo sold 8,706 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total value of $1,958,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,419 shares in the company, valued at $3,469,275. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 8,706 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total transaction of $1,958,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,419 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,469,275. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.58, for a total transaction 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 90 days, insiders have sold 188,884 shares of company stock valued at $38,092,387. 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.