Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Acquired by Macroview Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• Macroview Investment Management LLC increased its position in Apple Inc. by 24.0%, acquiring an additional 2,330 shares, which now makes up about 2.5% of its portfolio.
• Apple's stock is currently up 1.3%, trading at $227.76, with a market capitalization of $3.38 trillion and a P/E ratio of 34.56.
• Recently, Apple announced a $100 billion share repurchase program and a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, reflecting its strong financial position.

Macroview Investment Management LLC raised its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 24.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 12,022 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 2,330 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 2.5% of Macroview Investment Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Macroview Investment Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $2,670,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Elite Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the first quarter valued at about $58,000. World Investment Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.6% in the first quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 615,532 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $136,728,000 after purchasing an additional 9,762 shares in the last quarter. Generali Investments CEE investicni spolecnost a.s. lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 7.8% in the first quarter. Generali Investments CEE investicni spolecnost a.s. now owns 67,511 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $14,996,000 after purchasing an additional 4,891 shares in the last quarter. Eukles Asset Management lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.4% in the first quarter. Eukles Asset Management now owns 52,566 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $11,676,000 after purchasing an additional 712 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 2.7% in the first quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 145,763 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $32,378,000 after purchasing an additional 3,810 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL traded up $2.86 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $227.76. The stock had a trading volume of 42,431,176 shares, compared to its average volume of 61,854,304. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $260.10. The company has a market capitalization of $3.38 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.56, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $212.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $213.09.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $94.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.64 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 170.91%. Apple's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.40 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to buyback $100.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the iPhone maker to repurchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Apple's payout ratio is presently 15.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the company's 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. This represents a 20.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on AAPL. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Apple from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Scotiabank downgraded shares of Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $237.98.

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.