Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Holdings Lessened by Lincoln Capital LLC

Lincoln Capital LLC trimmed its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 57,304 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 481 shares during the period. Apple comprises 3.0% of Lincoln Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Lincoln Capital LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $14,350,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

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

Apple Stock Up 1.6 %

Apple stock opened at $239.07 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.59 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.92. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $164.08 and a fifty-two week high of $260.10. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $237.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $234.03.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.42%. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on AAPL. Citigroup upped their price objective on Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America upped their price objective on Apple from $253.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James upped their price objective on Apple to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 20th. Finally, Loop Capital downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $230.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $243.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.97, for a total value of $24,997,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 389,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $97,474,301.68. This represents a 20.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.