Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Position Raised by Mackenzie Financial Corp

Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 18.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,989,756 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 1,395,668 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 2.9% of Mackenzie Financial Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Mackenzie Financial Corp owned 0.06% of Apple worth $2,251,215,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Forum Financial Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 315,003 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $78,883,000 after purchasing an additional 10,526 shares during the last quarter. Baer Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,979,000. Griffith & Werner Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth $6,157,000. Wealth Management Strategies Inc. bought a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $4,832,000. Finally, Sunbeam Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $2,101,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on AAPL shares. Rosenblatt Securities downgraded Apple from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $217.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Apple from $270.00 to $245.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their target price on Apple from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $234.86.

Apple Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL traded up $4.42 during trading on Friday, reaching $201.00. 95,792,149 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 54,381,393. The firm has a market cap of $3.00 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $202.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $221.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.78. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 167.24%. The firm had revenue of $95.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.53 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.20%.

Apple announced that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total transaction of $933,940.34. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 15,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This trade represents a 22.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $941,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $941,214. This represents a 50.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 191,507 shares of company stock worth $42,694,080 in the last ninety days. Company 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.