Penserra Capital Management LLC Has $6.79 Million Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Penserra Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in Apple Inc. by 55.8%, now owning 30,594 shares worth approximately $6.79 million after selling 38,698 shares.
• Apple reported quarterly earnings of $1.57 EPS and revenue of $94.04 billion, surpassing analyst expectations and showing a 9.6% year-over-year increase.
• Apple's Board of Directors initiated a share buyback program, allowing repurchase of up to $100 billion in outstanding shares, indicating a belief that its stock is undervalued.

Penserra Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 55.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,594 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 38,698 shares during the quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $6,794,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at about $46,868,648,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 25,934.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 60,066,398 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $133,425,490,000 after acquiring an additional 59,835,676 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Apple by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,395,785,512 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $349,532,608,000 after acquiring an additional 49,168,843 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 23,555.4% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 21,055,240 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $5,272,653,000 after acquiring an additional 20,966,232 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Apple by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $42,918,365,000 after acquiring an additional 20,079,472 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Up 1.3%

Apple stock traded up $2.86 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $227.76. The stock had a trading volume of 42,431,176 shares, compared to its average volume of 61,854,304. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $212.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $212.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.38 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.16. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $260.10.

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

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share 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 typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were given a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Apple's payout ratio is currently 15.78%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $240.00 price objective (up previously from $230.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Apple from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 25th. 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 assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $237.98.

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.