Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Sold by Forte Capital LLC ADV

Key Points

• Forte Capital LLC ADV decreased its stake in Apple Inc. by 1.3%, holding approximately 225,618 shares worth $46.29 million, making it the fund's second-largest holding.
• Several institutional investors have made significant changes to their positions in Apple, with institutional ownership currently at 67.73% of the stock.
• Research analysts maintain a consensus target price of $247.49 for Apple shares, with ratings varying from "Strong Buy" to "Sell" from different firms.

Forte Capital LLC ADV reduced its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 225,618 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 2,914 shares during the period. Apple accounts for approximately 5.0% of Forte Capital LLC ADV's holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Forte Capital LLC ADV's holdings in Apple were worth $46,290,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ryan Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% in the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at about $47,000. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the first quarter valued at about $58,000. Finally, Conquis Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at about $63,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AAPL. Barclays lifted their target price on Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $266.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 25th. HSBC set a $220.00 price target on Apple and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, September 8th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $247.49.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 47,125 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.79, for a total transaction of $12,101,228.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 179,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,005,982.82. This represents a 20.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 43,013 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.39, for a total transaction of $11,071,116.07. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,181,866.93. This trade represents a 23.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 254,922 shares of company stock worth $64,320,190. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of AAPL opened at $258.02 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $233.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $214.69. The company has a market cap of $3.83 trillion, a P/E ratio of 39.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $260.10.

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

Apple Announces Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 15.78%.

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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