Sims Investment Management LLC Has $732,000 Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Sims Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 185.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,293 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 2,138 shares during the period. Apple makes up 0.3% of Sims Investment Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Sims Investment Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $732,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth $63,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at about $65,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at about $82,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $96,000. Finally, Collier Financial purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $140,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on AAPL shares. BMO Capital Markets reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Scotiabank cut Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $240.00 price target (up previously from $230.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $237.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total value of $7,772,047.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at $30,508,538.40. The trade was a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Price Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL traded up $3.95 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $233.60. The company had a trading volume of 55,591,683 shares, compared to its average volume of 57,968,047. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $260.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.47 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.51, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $207.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $213.21.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.64 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.40 EPS. Analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.78%.

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

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.