Gradient Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL – Free Report) by 9.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 366,915 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 30,706 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for about 1.6% of Gradient Investments LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Gradient Investments LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $60,504,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cassia Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Apple by 24.3% during the 4th quarter. Cassia Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,009 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $651,000 after acquiring an additional 979 shares during the period. Starfox Financial Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 21.5% during the 4th quarter. Starfox Financial Services LLC now owns 1,900 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $247,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth about $3,148,000. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. raised its stake in shares of Apple by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. now owns 2,340,129 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $304,053,000 after purchasing an additional 115,929 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the 3rd quarter worth about $563,000. 57.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Apple Price Performance
Shares of AAPL stock opened at $191.81 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $179.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $159.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market cap of $3.02 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.28. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $124.17 and a one year high of $194.48.
Apple declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 4th that allows the company to repurchase $90.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.
Apple Increases Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 18th. Investors of record on Monday, May 15th were paid a $0.24 dividend. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 12th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.50%. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 16.30%.
Insider Activity at Apple
In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,092 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.26, for a total value of $708,979.92. Following the sale, the insider now owns 33,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,881,483.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,092 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Monday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.26, for a total value of $708,979.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 33,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,881,483.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Luca Maestri sold 69,996 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.25, for a total value of $11,566,839.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 107,661 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,790,980.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Analyst Ratings Changes
AAPL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays raised their price target on Apple from $145.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Apple from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 19th. Atlantic Securities raised their price target on Apple from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on Apple from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 5th. Finally, Loop Capital downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, May 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and twenty-four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Apple has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $180.52.
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.
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