Maxwell Wealth Strategies Inc. Increases Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Maxwell Wealth Strategies Inc. increased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 11.1% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 31,758 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after buying an additional 3,179 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises 2.7% of Maxwell Wealth Strategies Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Maxwell Wealth Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $5,446,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 17.9% in the first quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 31,278 shares during the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 168.0% during the fourth quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 268 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. grew its stake in shares of Apple by 657.1% during 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 buying an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.58, for a total transaction of $14,368,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,359,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $835,207,570.08. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total transaction of $20,644,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 191,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,542,136.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 188,884 shares of company stock valued at $38,092,387 over the last ninety days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AAPL. Loop Capital upgraded Apple from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $170.00 to $300.00 in a report on Monday, July 15th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Apple from $190.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $273.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Evercore ISI reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty-five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $233.63.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL opened at $226.84 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $164.07 and a 1 year high of $237.23. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $220.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $194.40. The firm has a market cap of $3.48 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.06. Apple had a net margin of 26.44% and a return on equity of 145.35%. The business had revenue of $85.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.26 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 6.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

About Apple

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.