Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Sold by Fernwood Investment Management LLC

Fernwood Investment Management LLC decreased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 10.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,665 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 5,807 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for about 4.3% of Fernwood Investment Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Fernwood Investment Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $12,437,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Drystone LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $47,000. Conquis Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth about $63,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at about $71,000. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at about $77,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL traded down $0.19 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $211.26. 53,614,750 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 55,938,270. The stock 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 1 year low of $169.21 and a 1 year high of $260.10. 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 has a 50 day moving average of $206.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $226.68.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $95.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.53 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.49%. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple's payout ratio is 16.20%.

Apple announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on AAPL shares. Jefferies Financial Group reissued an "underperform" rating and issued a $170.62 price objective (up from $167.88) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, May 2nd. KeyCorp upgraded Apple from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Tigress Financial raised their price objective on Apple from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Redburn Partners set a $230.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $235.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of Apple 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $733,637,976.75. The trade was a 3.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $941,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 4,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at $941,214. This represents a 50.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 191,507 shares of company stock valued at $42,694,080 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Company 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.