Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Position Lessened by RWQ Financial Management Services Inc.

RWQ Financial Management Services Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 40.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 77,351 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 51,897 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 7.6% of RWQ Financial Management Services Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 5th largest position. RWQ Financial Management Services Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $19,370,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Elevate Wealth Advisory Inc. increased its stake in shares of Apple by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Elevate Wealth Advisory Inc. now owns 8,720 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $2,184,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares in the last quarter. BluePointe Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 30.5% in the fourth quarter. BluePointe Capital Management LLC now owns 17,919 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $4,487,000 after purchasing an additional 4,186 shares during the period. Certus Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Apple by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Certus Wealth Management LLC now owns 25,813 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $6,464,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC raised its stake in Apple by 53.3% during the fourth quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC now owns 93,806 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $23,491,000 after purchasing an additional 32,618 shares during the period. Finally, Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in Apple by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 25,688 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $6,433,000 after purchasing an additional 1,295 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider now owns 15,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This represents a 22.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total value of $24,184,616.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,295 shares in the company, valued at $733,637,976.75. This trade represents a 3.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 191,507 shares of company stock valued at $42,694,080. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James dropped their target price on shares of Apple from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Monness Crespi & Hardt dropped their target price on shares of Apple from $260.00 to $245.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Bank of America lowered their target price on Apple from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "cautious" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $235.80.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL traded down $0.94 during trading on Friday, reaching $199.01. The company had a trading volume of 70,744,759 shares, compared to its average volume of 56,229,633. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $203.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $225.02. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $169.21 and a fifty-two week high of $260.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.97 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $95.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.53 earnings per share. Apple's quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a $0.26 dividend. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 16.20%.

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.