Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Sold by Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc.

Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. lessened its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 1.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 651,093 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 6,267 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 4.7% of Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $144,627,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Dividend Assets Capital LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 6.4% during the first quarter. Dividend Assets Capital LLC now owns 22,445 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $4,986,000 after purchasing an additional 1,356 shares in the last quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 1.7% in the first quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC now owns 174,310 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $38,719,000 after purchasing an additional 2,871 shares during the last quarter. Walker Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the first quarter. Walker Asset Management LLC now owns 22,684 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $5,039,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Ibex Wealth Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 7.3% during the first quarter. Ibex Wealth Advisors now owns 136,618 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $30,347,000 after buying an additional 9,250 shares during the period. Finally, Home Federal Bank of Tennessee raised its stake in Apple by 1.4% during the first quarter. Home Federal Bank of Tennessee now owns 28,357 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $6,299,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total transaction of $933,940.34. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 15,533 shares in the company, valued at $3,233,815.27. This trade represents a 22.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 4,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at $941,214. The trade was a 50.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of AAPL stock traded down $1.25 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $211.16. The stock had a trading volume of 39,713,698 shares, compared to its average volume of 53,348,025. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $203.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $217.41. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $169.21 and a 52-week high of $260.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.15 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

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

Apple declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase 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 buy up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple's payout ratio is presently 16.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on AAPL shares. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on shares of Apple to $245.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Scotiabank downgraded Apple to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Apple to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Loop Capital reduced their price objective on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $235.27.

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.