Braun Stacey Associates Inc. Trims Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Braun Stacey Associates Inc. has reduced its stake in Apple Inc. by 1.4%, owning 622,396 shares valued at approximately $138.25 million, making Apple its largest position.
• Analysts have set various price targets for Apple, with recent adjustments including a raise from Barclays to $180.00 and from Monness Crespi & Hardt to $270.00, indicating a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."
• Apple recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share and announced a $100 billion stock buyback program, signaling management’s confidence in the stock's value.

Braun Stacey Associates Inc. decreased its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 1.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 622,396 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 9,033 shares during the period. Apple makes up 5.7% of Braun Stacey Associates Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its biggest position. Braun Stacey Associates Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $138,253,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Conquis Financial LLC bought a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $63,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $65,000. Elite Financial Inc. bought a new position in Apple during the 1st quarter worth $58,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $82,000. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $96,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays raised their price target on Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. BMO Capital Markets restated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Evercore ISI restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price target on Apple from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $237.98.

Apple Price Performance

Apple stock traded up $2.86 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $227.76. The company's stock had a trading volume of 42,431,176 shares, compared to its average volume of 61,854,304. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $260.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $212.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $213.09. The stock has a market cap of $3.38 trillion, a PE 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 released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $94.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $88.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.40 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. The trade was a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple 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.