Websterrogers Financial Advisors LLC Buys 2,329 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Websterrogers Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 51.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,836 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,329 shares during the period. Websterrogers Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $1,712,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. Bull Oak Capital LLC grew its holdings in Apple by 252.3% in the third quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc grew its stake in Apple by 88.9% during the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 306 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda purchased a new position in Apple during the 3rd quarter worth $71,000. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America acquired a new position in Apple during the 3rd quarter valued at about $77,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Stock Down 1.3 %

Apple stock opened at $237.30 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.56 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.20. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $239.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $233.42. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $164.07 and a 12 month high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 160.83%. On average, analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.97, for a total transaction of $24,997,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 389,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $97,474,301.68. This represents a 20.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AAPL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays raised their price target on Apple from $183.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Apple to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 20th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $262.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Moffett Nathanson reissued a “sell” rating and set a $188.00 price objective (down from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $243.88.

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.