Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Sold by Vista Investment Partners LLC

Key Points

• Vista Investment Partners LLC decreased its position in Apple Inc. by 2.2% in the second quarter, holding 47,535 shares after selling 1,080 shares.
• Apple's market capitalization stands at $3.79 trillion, with shares trading between a 12-month low of $169.21 and a high of $260.10.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, yielding 0.4%, as part of a total annualized dividend payout of $1.04.

Vista Investment Partners LLC cut its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,535 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 1,080 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up 2.8% of Vista Investment Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Vista Investment Partners LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $9,753,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Apple during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $700,000. Cypress Point Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Apple by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Cypress Point Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,432 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $1,525,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC lifted its position in Apple by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 494,274 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $105,552,000 after acquiring an additional 1,395 shares during the period. Community Trust & Investment Co. lifted its position in Apple by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Community Trust & Investment Co. now owns 383,479 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $78,678,000 after acquiring an additional 16,877 shares during the period. Finally, Strathmore Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Apple during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,758,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total value 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 $30,508,538.40. This trade represents a 20.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAPL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $266.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Apple from $190.67 to $205.82 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities increased their target price on Apple from $223.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $245.66.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $255.46 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.21 and a 12-month high of $260.10. The company has a market cap of $3.79 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $228.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $213.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $88.64 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.40 EPS. Apple's quarterly revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.78%.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AAPL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.