3,990 Shares in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Bought by Manuka Financial LLC

Manuka Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 3,990 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock, valued at approximately $999,000. Apple accounts for 0.7% of Manuka Financial LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its stake in Apple by 21.1% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 3,380,064 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $787,631,000 after purchasing an additional 588,427 shares during the last quarter. Sendero Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Sendero Wealth Management LLC now owns 63,999 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $14,912,000 after purchasing an additional 1,243 shares during the period. Selective Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Apple by 29.0% in the 3rd quarter. Selective Wealth Management Inc. now owns 28,389 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $6,409,000 after buying an additional 6,385 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. grew its stake in Apple by 1.0% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 33,530 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $7,812,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LifePro Asset Management grew its stake in shares of Apple by 9.9% in the 3rd quarter. LifePro Asset Management now owns 8,313 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,937,000 after buying an additional 752 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $217.90 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.27 trillion, a PE ratio of 34.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $230.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $233.26. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $164.08 and a twelve month high of $260.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced 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 return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. Research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current 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 paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.46%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AAPL shares. Oppenheimer downgraded Apple from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and set a $262.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $325.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on Apple from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $245.52.

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.