Apple Inc. $AAPL Holdings Increased by PFG Investments LLC

Key Points

• PFG Investments LLC increased its Apple stake by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, adding 14,556 shares to reach 531,586 shares valued at about $144.5 million. Apple remains the firm’s largest holding, accounting for roughly 6.8% of its portfolio.
• Apple posted strong quarterly results, reporting $2.01 EPS and $111.18 billion in revenue, both ahead of estimates. Revenue rose 16.6% from a year earlier, and analysts still expect full-year EPS of 8.74.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.27 per share from $0.26, signaling a modest increase in shareholder returns. The annualized dividend now totals $1.08 per share, for a yield of about 0.4%.

PFG Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 531,586 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after buying an additional 14,556 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 6.8% of PFG Investments LLC's holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. PFG Investments LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $144,517,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 2nd quarter worth about $38,942,255,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 1st quarter worth about $17,472,482,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 20,464.8% in the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27,069,029 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $5,553,753,000 after buying an additional 26,937,401 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of 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 period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of 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 worth $26,220,566,000 after buying an additional 13,137,968 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL stock opened at $293.25 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $193.46 and a one year high of $294.76. The company's fifty day moving average price is $261.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $266.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.07. The company has a market capitalization of $4.31 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.06.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. The firm had revenue of $111.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.65 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 11th. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 12.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on AAPL shares. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $270.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Stephens set a $315.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, January 26th. KeyCorp reissued a "sector weight" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Moffett Nathanson increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $241.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $330.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, March 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $305.74.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush lifted Apple’s price target to $400 and said AI could drive a major growth wave for AAPL. Apple price target boosted by Wedbush on AI monetization expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple reached a preliminary chip-making deal with Intel boosted confidence in Apple’s manufacturing strategy and supply chain flexibility. Apple, Intel Have Reached Preliminary Chip-Making Agreement
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see WWDC as a potential inflection point, with upcoming AI-related software features seen as a possible catalyst for Apple’s next leg higher. Apple’s biggest bull is now calling for a 37% stock jump
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple remains near its recent highs after strong quarterly results, keeping investor expectations elevated ahead of the next catalyst. Dow Jones Futures: Market At Highs With Iran, Trump-Xi Summit In Focus; Apple, Nvidia, Boeing In Buy Areas
• Negative Sentiment: Apple also faces ongoing legal and regulatory noise, including a Siri settlement and App Store antitrust disputes, which could weigh on sentiment if they escalate. Apple promised a smarter Siri, but a lawsuit says it didn’t deliver—and you can get up to $95 back

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total transaction of $7,661,010.70. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares in the company, valued at $34,934,433.50. The trade was a 17.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total value of $16,511,984.27. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at $833,980,668.14. The trade was a 1.94% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 96,485 shares of company stock worth $24,594,845. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Profile

Apple Inc NASDAQ: AAPL is a multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, founded in 1976 by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. The company designs, develops and sells consumer electronics, software and services. Over its history Apple has evolved from personal computers to a broad portfolio that spans mobile devices, wearables, home entertainment and digital services.

Apple's principal hardware products include the iPhone smartphone, iPad tablet, Mac personal computers, Apple Watch wearable devices and a range of accessories such as AirPods and HomePod.

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