Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stake Trimmed by MidWestOne Financial Group Inc.

MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.2% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 140,141 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 1,771 shares during the period. Apple accounts for 5.3% of MidWestOne Financial Group Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $29,516,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Apple during the 1st quarter worth approximately $140,000. Hoese & Co LLP grew its stake in shares of Apple by 6.7% during the second quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 912 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $175,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Sage Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Apple in the second quarter valued at $206,000. Benchmark Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Apple in the second quarter valued at $208,000. Finally, SMH Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Apple during the 2nd quarter worth about $209,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Price Performance

Apple stock opened at $228.22 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.87. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $164.07 and a one year high of $237.49. The company has a market cap of $3.45 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.24. The business has a fifty day moving average of $226.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $215.52.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.04. Apple had a net margin of 23.97% and a return on equity of 152.94%. The firm had revenue of $94.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94.52 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.46 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.45%.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 223,986 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.46, for a total value of $50,275,897.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $736,269,202.80. This represents a 6.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 61,019 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.20, for a total transaction of $13,802,497.80. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 187,043 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,309,126.60. This trade represents a 24.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 404,040 shares of company stock valued at $91,062,512 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Moffett Nathanson began coverage on Apple in a research report on Monday, August 19th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $211.00 target price on the stock. New Street Research reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $285.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, September 9th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer restated a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $235.51.

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.