Washington Trust Advisors Inc. Lowers Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Washington Trust Advisors Inc. lessened its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 311,218 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 3,093 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 6.5% of Washington Trust Advisors Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Washington Trust Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $77,935,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Drystone LLC bought a new position in Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda acquired a new stake in Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at $71,000. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America acquired a new position in Apple during the third quarter worth $77,000. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new position in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at $96,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Apple Stock Down 0.1%

AAPL stock traded down $0.19 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $211.26. The company had a trading volume of 53,614,750 shares, compared to its average volume of 55,938,270. The company has a market capitalization of $3.16 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.53, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $260.10. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $206.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $226.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. Apple's payout ratio is currently 16.20%.

Apple declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to repurchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, May 2nd. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and set a $170.62 price objective (up previously from $167.88) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $270.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Apple from $270.00 to $245.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $235.80.

Insider Activity

In other Apple news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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. The trade was a 3.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 35,493 shares of the firm'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 owns 390,059 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $87,377,116.59. This represents a 8.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 191,507 shares of company stock valued at $42,694,080. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.