Natixis Advisors LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 7.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,735,785 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 543,332 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up approximately 3.6% of Natixis Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Natixis Advisors LLC owned about 0.05% of Apple worth $1,937,195,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Drystone LLC acquired a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda bought a new position in shares of Apple in the third quarter valued at about $71,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at about $82,000. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new position in shares of Apple in the third quarter valued at about $77,000. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at about $96,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL traded down $0.47 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $199.95. The company had a trading volume of 51,367,725 shares, compared to its average volume of 56,221,859. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.99 trillion, a P/E ratio of 31.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $260.10. The firm's 50 day moving average is $203.59 and its 200-day moving average is $225.20.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.53 EPS. On average, analysts expect 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 paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This is a boost from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 16.20%.

Apple declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the iPhone maker to reacquire up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $170.62 price objective (up from $167.88) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Citigroup restated a "cautious" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Oppenheimer lowered Apple from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Apple from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt decreased their price objective on Apple from $260.00 to $245.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $235.80.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other Apple news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.67, for a total transaction of $8,683,316.74. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 179,158 shares in the company, valued at $40,072,269.86. This trade represents a 17.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total value of $24,184,616.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,295 shares in the company, valued at $733,637,976.75. The trade was a 3.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 191,507 shares of company stock worth $42,694,080. 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.