Lewis Asset Management LLC Trims Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Lewis Asset Management LLC decreased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 27.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 43,459 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 16,458 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises 8.3% of Lewis Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Lewis Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $10,883,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its stake in Apple by 21.1% in the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 3,380,064 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $787,631,000 after purchasing an additional 588,427 shares during the period. First PREMIER Bank increased its stake in shares of Apple by 1.7% in the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 93,467 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $21,778,000 after buying an additional 1,551 shares during the period. Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. raised its holdings in Apple by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 118,888 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $26,356,000 after buying an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. Great Oak Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Apple by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Great Oak Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,978 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,129,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, Tilia Fiduciary Partners Inc. grew its holdings in Apple by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Tilia Fiduciary Partners Inc. now owns 32,816 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $7,646,000 after acquiring an additional 1,656 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Trading Down 1.0 %

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $221.53 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $231.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $233.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $164.08 and a 52 week high of $260.10. The stock has a market cap of $3.33 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.16, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. Apple’s payout ratio is 15.87%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. DA Davidson set a $290.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup increased their price objective on Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Apple from $275.00 to $252.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price target on Apple to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $243.65.

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.