Stonegate Investment Group LLC Has $251.09 Million Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Stonegate Investment Group LLC trimmed its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,002,672 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 30,218 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 6.7% of Stonegate Investment Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. Stonegate Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $251,089,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Bull Oak Capital LLC grew its position in 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 purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the third quarter valued at $71,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc increased 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 acquiring an additional 144 shares during the period. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America purchased a new position in Apple in the 3rd quarter worth $77,000. Finally, ARK Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the third quarter valued at about $110,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on AAPL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Apple from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on Apple to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $325.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, March 14th. Argus raised shares of Apple to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.65.

Apple Stock Up 1.9 %

AAPL opened at $218.27 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.28 trillion, a PE ratio of 34.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18. The business has a 50-day moving average of $231.82 and a 200-day moving average of $233.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $164.08 and a fifty-two week high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

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.