Legato Capital Management LLC Has $8.46 Million Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Legato Capital Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 29.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,154 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 17,109 shares during the period. Apple accounts for approximately 1.1% of Legato Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Legato Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $8,457,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Apple by 17.9% during the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 31,278 shares in the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. raised its position in shares of Apple by 657.1% in the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $85,000. 60.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Apple Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $226.78 on Thursday. 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 stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $222.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $203.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.48 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.27, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.24. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $164.07 and a 52-week high of $237.23.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $85.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.43 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 147.15% and a net margin of 26.44%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.26 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Erste Group Bank raised Apple from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Piper Sandler Companies reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 price target (up from $190.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Apple from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Melius Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $265.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $238.76.

Insider Activity

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

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.