Analyst IMS Investment Management Services Ltd. Boosts Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Analyst IMS Investment Management Services Ltd. raised its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 3.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 87,655 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 3,108 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for about 0.8% of Analyst IMS Investment Management Services Ltd.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Analyst IMS Investment Management Services Ltd.'s holdings in Apple were worth $21,950,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Drystone LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the third quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the third quarter valued at approximately $77,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter worth $82,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL stock opened at $195.27 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.92 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.00, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $205.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $225.92. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $260.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) 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 the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.53 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a $0.26 dividend. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 16.20%.

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the iPhone maker to reacquire up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on AAPL shares. Maxim Group boosted their price target on shares of Apple to $215.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Oppenheimer cut shares of Apple from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Scotiabank cut shares of Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Redburn Partners set a $230.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $235.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total value of $933,940.34. Following the sale, the insider now owns 15,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This trade represents a 22.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were 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 directly owns 4,569 shares in the company, valued at $941,214. This represents a 50.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 191,507 shares of company stock valued at $42,694,080 over the last 90 days. 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.

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