Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Commonwealth Equity Services LLC's Largest Position

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,593,988 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 77,639 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 4.2% of Commonwealth Equity Services LLC's holdings, making the stock its largest position. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned 0.08% of Apple worth $2,903,366,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AAPL. VanWeelden Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at about $270,000. DecisionMap Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,737,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 6,876 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $1,722,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. PGGM Investments raised its position in shares of Apple by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 1,124,311 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $281,550,000 after acquiring an additional 64,056 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. raised its position in shares of Apple by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. now owns 1,090,779 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $273,152,000 after acquiring an additional 74,545 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $195.27 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $205.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $225.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $260.10. The company has a market capitalization of $2.92 trillion, a P/E ratio of 31.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. The company had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.53 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were given a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.20%.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to reacquire up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Oppenheimer downgraded Apple from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Monness Crespi & Hardt reduced their target price on Apple from $260.00 to $245.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Redburn Partners set a $230.00 price objective on Apple in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, KeyCorp raised Apple from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $235.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total value 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $941,420.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 4,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at $941,214. This trade represents a 50.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 191,507 shares of company stock worth $42,694,080. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Apple

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.

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