Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Sold by Peak Financial Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Peak Financial Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Apple by 11.0%, owning 15,777 shares worth approximately $3.24 million by the end of the second quarter.
• Research firms have mixed forecasts for Apple's stock, with one firm lowering its price target to $226 while others set targets as high as $266, resulting in a consensus target price of $241.93.
• In a recent insider transaction, SVP Deirdre O'Brien sold 34,821 shares of Apple stock for around $7.77 million, representing a 20.30% decrease in her holdings.

Peak Financial Advisors LLC decreased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 11.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,777 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 1,946 shares during the period. Apple comprises 1.7% of Peak Financial Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Peak Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $3,237,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC raised 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 buying an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new position in Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Apple during the first quarter worth approximately $58,000. Conquis Financial LLC acquired a new position in Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $63,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of Apple stock traded up $7.62 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $245.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 163,435,991 shares, compared to its average volume of 47,568,860. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $224.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $212.42. 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 Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $260.10. The stock has a market cap of $3.64 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.11.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $94.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $88.64 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.40 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total value of $7,772,047.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. This trade represents a 20.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on AAPL shares. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday. They set an "outperform" rating and a $290.00 price target for the company. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price target on shares of Apple from $223.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Tigress Financial upped their price target on shares of Apple from $300.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Loop Capital decreased their target price on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $226.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $242.74.

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.