Wharton Business Group LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Wharton Business Group LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 437,576 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 3,233 shares during the period. Apple comprises about 5.0% of Wharton Business Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Wharton Business Group LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $109,578,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL traded down $7.97 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $205.35. 100,891,435 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 56,620,753. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock's fifty day moving average is $212.15 and its 200 day moving average is $228.63. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $260.10. The stock has a market cap of $3.08 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.26.

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

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple's payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In related news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.67, for a total transaction of $8,683,316.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 179,158 shares of the company's stock, valued at $40,072,269.86. This trade represents a 17.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 35,493 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.01, for a total transaction of $7,950,786.93. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 390,059 shares in the company, valued at $87,377,116.59. This represents a 8.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 187,021 shares of company stock valued at $41,760,140 in the last 90 days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Apple from $275.00 to $245.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Moffett Nathanson reiterated a "sell" rating and set a $188.00 price objective (down from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Redburn Partners set a $230.00 target price on Apple in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America cut their price target on Apple from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Apple from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $233.25.

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.