Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC's 3rd Largest Position

Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC cut its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 3.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 131,628 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 4,377 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 4.6% of Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $29,238,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AAPL. Drystone LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. Conquis Financial LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at $63,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $82,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of AAPL stock traded down $2.54 on Monday, hitting $208.62. 38,653,968 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 57,464,684. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.12 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.20. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $203.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $216.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.82. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $95.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 167.24%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.53 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 16.20%.

Apple declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $235.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their target price on shares of Apple to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $235.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider owned 15,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This represents a 22.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $941,420.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 4,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at $941,214. This represents a 50.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.