Mount Vernon Associates Inc. MD Sells 1,660 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Mount Vernon Associates Inc. MD lessened its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.6% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 62,627 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 1,660 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises 11.7% of Mount Vernon Associates Inc. MD’s holdings, making the stock its largest holding. Mount Vernon Associates Inc. MD’s holdings in Apple were worth $13,191,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC now owns 91,369 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $17,591,000 after purchasing an additional 3,773 shares during the period. Geneva Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 68.5% in the fourth quarter. Geneva Partners LLC now owns 4,906 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $944,000 after purchasing an additional 1,994 shares in the last quarter. Heirloom Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Apple by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Heirloom Wealth Management now owns 40,266 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $7,752,000 after purchasing an additional 1,016 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its position in Apple by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 555,760 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $107,001,000 after purchasing an additional 38,428 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stephenson & Company Inc. acquired a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $1,713,000. Institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $216.79 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.32 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.72, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.95. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $222.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $199.26. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $164.07 and a 52-week high of $237.23.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.06. Apple had a net margin of 26.44% and a return on equity of 147.15%. The firm had revenue of $85.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $84.43 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.26 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 6.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AAPL. Moffett Nathanson started coverage on Apple in a research report on Monday, August 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $211.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler Companies reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 price objective (up previously from $190.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Cfra raised their target price on shares of Apple from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Apple from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $239.17.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total transaction of $20,644,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Chris Kondo sold 8,706 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total value of $1,958,850.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,419 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,469,275. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total transaction of $20,644,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 191,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 113,884 shares of company stock valued at $23,723,887. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

About Apple

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.