Gulf International Bank UK Ltd Has $253.88 Million Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd decreased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 3.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,205,387 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 37,881 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 6.4% of Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s holdings in Apple were worth $253,878,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AAPL. Yeomans Consulting Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,713,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Apple by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,511 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,986,000 after buying an additional 1,643 shares in the last quarter. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth $38,406,000. Barden Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Apple by 132.8% during the 4th quarter. Barden Capital Management Inc. now owns 32,636 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $6,283,000 after acquiring an additional 18,615 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sunpointe LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $4,782,000. Institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL opened at $226.49 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.47 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.22, a PEG 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 Inc. has a twelve month low of $164.07 and a twelve month high of $237.23. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $220.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $195.02.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $85.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.26 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 6.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were paid 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 of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.55%.

Apple declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase 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 often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AAPL. Tigress Financial upped their price objective on Apple from $245.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Maxim Group raised their price target on shares of Apple from $195.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of Apple from $195.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Loop Capital raised shares of 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 research report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price target on shares of Apple from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $237.30.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 8,706 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now owns 15,419 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,469,275. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total value of $20,644,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at $39,542,136.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 8,706 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was 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 owns 15,419 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,469,275. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 113,884 shares of company stock worth $23,723,887 in the last quarter. 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.