Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Van Cleef Asset Management Inc's 2nd Largest Position

Van Cleef Asset Management Inc decreased its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 452,000 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 2,798 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 12.4% of Van Cleef Asset Management Inc's holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Van Cleef Asset Management Inc's holdings in Apple were worth $113,190,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. O Connor Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Apple by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. O Connor Financial Group LLC now owns 3,578 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $896,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Menard Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 0.4% during the third quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 12,221 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $2,848,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Apple by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 3,775 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $945,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Family Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Apple by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 16,910 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $4,235,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA grew its holdings in Apple by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 16,682 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $4,178,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of Apple stock opened at $196.26 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $2.95 trillion, a P/E ratio of 31.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The business's 50 day moving average is $209.64 and its 200-day moving average is $227.91. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.21 and a 12-month high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 160.83%. Apple's revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.53 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Apple's payout ratio is presently 16.20%.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.67, for a total value of $8,683,316.74. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 179,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,072,269.86. This represents a 17.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total transaction of $24,184,616.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at $733,637,976.75. This trade represents a 3.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 187,021 shares of company stock worth $41,760,140. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on AAPL. China Renaissance assumed coverage on Apple in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $241.00 price target on the stock. Wedbush cut Apple from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Scotiabank cut Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reissued an "underperform" rating and set a $170.62 price objective (up previously from $167.88) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Apple from $197.00 to $173.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $235.80.

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.

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