Apple Inc. $AAPL is Next Level Private LLC's 9th Largest Position

Key Points

• Next Level Private LLC has increased its stake in Apple Inc. by 12.3%, acquiring a total of 36,581 shares, which account for approximately 2.4% of its portfolio.
• Several institutional investors have significantly adjusted their positions in Apple, with Norges Bank purchasing a stake valued at $46.87 billion and Vanguard Group growing its holdings by 3.7%.
• Apple reported $1.57 earnings per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, with a revenue increase of 9.6% year-over-year.

Next Level Private LLC lifted its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 12.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,581 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 4,021 shares during the period. Apple makes up about 2.4% of Next Level Private LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Next Level Private LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $7,505,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% during the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Elite Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Apple in the first quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Conquis Financial LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on AAPL shares. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. BMO Capital Markets restated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. HSBC set a $220.00 price target on shares of Apple and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Phillip Securities lowered shares of Apple from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating and set a $200.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Thursday, September 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Apple from $190.67 to $205.82 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $244.03.

Apple Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of Apple stock traded down $1.32 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $254.76. The company's stock had a trading volume of 30,536,489 shares, compared to its average volume of 57,417,355. The company has a market capitalization of $3.78 trillion, a P/E ratio of 38.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.11. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $225.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $212.22. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $260.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.87.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is presently 15.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. This represents a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

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.