Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Position Lowered by Manitou Investment Management Ltd.

Manitou Investment Management Ltd. lessened its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 35.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 90,665 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 50,175 shares during the period. Apple comprises 3.9% of Manitou Investment Management Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Manitou Investment Management Ltd.'s holdings in Apple were worth $20,139,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tallon Kerry Patrick bought a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $1,877,000. First National Bank of Hutchinson lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $8,845,000 after purchasing an additional 6,982 shares during the last quarter. Capital & Planning LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 27,298 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $6,836,000 after purchasing an additional 2,647 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $13,544,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Independent Wealth Network Inc. lifted its stake in Apple by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 21,617 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $5,413,000 after buying an additional 1,280 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Price Performance

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $211.16 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.15 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.20. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.21 and a 1 year high of $260.10. The business's fifty day moving average is $203.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $217.41. 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 (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $95.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 167.24% and a net margin of 24.30%. Apple's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.53 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on AAPL. KeyCorp upgraded Apple from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Barclays set a $173.00 price objective on shares of Apple and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Apple from $245.00 to $230.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Apple to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Scotiabank cut Apple to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $235.27.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AAPL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.