Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Sold by Meridiem Investment Management Ltd.

Meridiem Investment Management Ltd. trimmed its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,774 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 713 shares during the period. Apple comprises 0.1% of Meridiem Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest position. Meridiem Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in Apple were worth $3,209,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AAPL. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in Apple during the first quarter worth approximately $3,026,492,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC boosted its position in Apple by 14,145.8% during the second quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 7,612,261 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,603,000 after purchasing an additional 7,558,826 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in Apple by 158.3% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 11,532,438 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,977,582,000 after purchasing an additional 7,067,379 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Apple by 161.2% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 8,759,445 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,502,068,000 after purchasing an additional 5,405,542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Apple during the second quarter worth approximately $834,368,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL stock opened at $247.96 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The company has a market capitalization of $3.75 trillion, a PE ratio of 40.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.23. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $164.07 and a 12-month high of $250.80. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $231.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $222.83.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.40%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.45%.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,130 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.87, for a total transaction of $945,233.10. Following the sale, the insider now owns 15,419 shares in the company, valued at $3,528,946.53. This represents a 21.13 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 223,986 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was 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 owns 3,280,180 shares in the company, valued at approximately $736,269,202.80. This trade represents a 6.39 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 408,170 shares of company stock worth $92,007,745. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on AAPL shares. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $236.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Loop Capital decreased their target price on Apple from $300.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI restated a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $236.78.

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.