Apple Inc. $AAPL Holdings Cut by Belpointe Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Belpointe Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Apple Inc. by 13.4%, selling 48,918 shares, bringing its total holdings to 314,908 shares valued at approximately $69.95 million.
• Apple's latest earnings report showed a 9.6% increase in revenue year-over-year, reporting $94.04 billion in revenue and a return on equity of 170.91%.
• Analysts have set varied price targets for Apple, with Melius Research estimating a target of $290.00 while Loop Capital has reduced its target to $226.00.

Belpointe Asset Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 13.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 314,908 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 48,918 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 3.6% of Belpointe Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Belpointe Asset Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $69,951,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AAPL. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,400,790,809 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $311,157,662,000 after purchasing an additional 5,005,297 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Apple by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 340,164,913 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $84,999,145,000 after purchasing an additional 6,307,413 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $46,868,648,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Apple by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $42,918,365,000 after buying an additional 20,079,472 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in Apple by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 104,706,358 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $26,220,566,000 after buying an additional 13,137,968 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of AAPL opened at $234.07 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $260.10. The stock's 50-day moving average is $221.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $212.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market cap of $3.47 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.11.

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

Apple Announces Dividend

The company 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. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on AAPL shares. Melius Research set a $290.00 price objective on shares of Apple and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Loop Capital dropped their price target on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $226.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. DA Davidson reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities upped their price objective on Apple from $223.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $240.80.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total transaction of $7,772,047.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,508,538.40. The trade was a 20.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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