Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC's 6th Largest Position

Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC lessened its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 17.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,846 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 3,600 shares during the period. Apple accounts for 1.2% of Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC's holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $4,219,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Drystone LLC purchased a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda bought a new position in Apple in the third quarter valued at $71,000. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the third quarter worth approximately $77,000. Finally, ARK Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the third quarter worth about $110,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Apple Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL traded up $0.82 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $213.32. 55,559,513 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 56,562,730. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.11 and a one year high of $260.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.20 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.26. The business's 50 day moving average is $213.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $228.95.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.04. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.53 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. This is a boost from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple's payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $263.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group dropped their price target on Apple from $236.00 to $210.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $232.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $941,420.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $941,214. This trade represents a 50.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total value of $24,184,616.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,295 shares in the company, valued at $733,637,976.75. This represents a 3.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 187,021 shares of company stock worth $41,760,140 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

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.