Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stake Lowered by Naples Global Advisors LLC

Naples Global Advisors LLC lessened its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 197,908 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 2,956 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for approximately 4.2% of Naples Global Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its biggest position. Naples Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $41,683,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Arista Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Apple by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Arista Wealth Management LLC now owns 27,763 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $5,345,000 after purchasing an additional 629 shares during the period. HF Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC now owns 8,938 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,721,000 after acquiring an additional 1,415 shares during the period. ESG Planning lifted its holdings in Apple by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. ESG Planning now owns 14,068 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $2,709,000 after acquiring an additional 388 shares during the period. Peterson Wealth Services purchased a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $18,208,000. Finally, Strid Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Strid Group LLC now owns 10,597 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $2,040,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 5,178 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.50, for a total transaction of $1,121,037.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 24,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,223,062.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 5,178 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.50, for a total transaction of $1,121,037.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 24,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,223,062.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total value of $20,644,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at $39,542,136.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 113,884 shares of company stock valued at $23,723,887. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $222.50 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $223.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $198.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.38 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.60, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.24. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $164.07 and a 52-week high of $237.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.95.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $85.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $84.43 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 147.15% and a net margin of 26.44%. The business’s revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.26 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 6.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.45%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $273.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Apple from $195.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Apple from $190.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Moffett Nathanson assumed coverage on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, August 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $211.00 target price for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Apple from $200.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $238.62.

Apple 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.