Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV Cuts Stock Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV decreased its stake in Apple Inc. by 18.8%, selling 13,237 shares and now holding 57,205 shares, valued at $12,707,000.
• Institutional investors own 67.73% of Apple's stock, with several hedge funds acquiring new positions in the company recently, indicating continued interest in Apple despite Acorn's reduction.
• Apple has initiated a $100 billion stock buyback program, a move perceived as management's belief that the stock is undervalued, and recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share.

Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV reduced its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 18.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 57,205 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 13,237 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises 2.3% of Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV's holdings, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV's holdings in Apple were worth $12,707,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Conquis Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth approximately $63,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth approximately $65,000. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the first quarter worth approximately $58,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth approximately $82,000. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter worth approximately $96,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total transaction of $7,772,047.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. This represents a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group lifted their target price on Apple from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Apple from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Apple from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $237.98.

Apple Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL traded up $2.86 during trading on Friday, reaching $227.76. 42,431,176 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 61,854,304. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $260.10. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $212.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $213.09. The firm has a market cap of $3.38 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.16.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.14. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%.The company had revenue of $94.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. Apple's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to reacquire up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 15.78%.

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.