Apple Inc. $AAPL Position Trimmed by Fisher Funds Management LTD

Key Points

• Fisher Funds Management cut its Apple stake by 22.2% in the first quarter, selling 74,314 shares and leaving the firm with 260,471 shares valued at about $66.1 million.
• Apple’s latest quarterly results topped expectations, with EPS of $2.01 versus $1.95 estimated and revenue of $111.18 billion, up 16.6% year over year.
• Insider selling continued, including CEO Tim Cook and CFO Kevan Parekh, while analysts overall still rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus target price of $314.85.

Fisher Funds Management LTD decreased its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 22.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 260,471 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 74,314 shares during the period. Apple comprises 1.9% of Fisher Funds Management LTD's portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Fisher Funds Management LTD's holdings in Apple were worth $66,105,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Balboa Wealth Partners boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.3% during the first quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 70,637 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $17,927,000 after purchasing an additional 936 shares during the period. Ballast Rock Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in Apple by 7.8% in the 1st quarter. Ballast Rock Private Wealth LLC now owns 31,574 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $8,013,000 after buying an additional 2,275 shares during the period. Strong Tower Advisory Services increased its stake in Apple by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services now owns 41,631 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $10,566,000 after buying an additional 1,190 shares during the period. Forbes J M & Co. LLP lifted its position in Apple by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Forbes J M & Co. LLP now owns 248,512 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $63,070,000 after buying an additional 2,225 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JDH Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. JDH Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,221 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $1,579,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total transaction of $16,511,984.27. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $833,980,668.14. The trade was a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $421,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,675,650. This trade represents a 10.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 97,875 shares of company stock worth $24,998,541. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $275.15 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $292.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $273.12. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $199.26 and a twelve month high of $317.40. The company has a market cap of $4.04 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.27, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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. The company had revenue of $111.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.46 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.65 EPS. Research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 13.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. KeyCorp reissued a "sector weight" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, June 8th. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Apple from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a "neutral" rating and set a $276.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $314.85.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts say the price hikes could help Apple protect margins by passing through rising component costs, and long-term bulls still view the company as financially strong. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s AI strategy remains a work in progress, with some coverage saying the company’s AI upgrade likely will not be a major near-term catalyst for the stock. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Apple’s decision to raise Mac and iPad prices has sparked concern about weaker demand and “demand friction,” especially if consumers push back on higher-priced devices. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market weakness and a tech selloff added pressure, with Apple leading the downside among major technology names. Article Title

Apple Company 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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