Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Bought by Central Bank & Trust Co.

Central Bank & Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 6.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 93,517 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 6,026 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 3.5% of Central Bank & Trust Co.'s holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Central Bank & Trust Co.'s holdings in Apple were worth $20,773,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,877,000. First National Bank of Hutchinson raised its position in shares of Apple by 24.6% during 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 raised its position in shares of Apple by 10.7% during 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. ARS Investment Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. ARS Investment Partners LLC now owns 378,612 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $94,812,000 after purchasing an additional 11,705 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brookmont Capital Management raised its position in shares of Apple by 14.5% during the 4th quarter. Brookmont Capital Management now owns 1,065 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $267,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $941,420.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 4,569 shares in the company, valued at $941,214. The trade was a 50.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total transaction of $933,940.34. Following the completion of the transaction, 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. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of Apple stock opened at $210.01 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $203.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $218.08. 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 Inc. has a twelve month low of $169.21 and a twelve month high of $260.10. The stock has a market cap of $3.14 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.20.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 167.24%. The firm had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $94.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.53 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

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 given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. This is a boost from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 16.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on AAPL. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Apple to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, June 13th. Rosenblatt Securities downgraded Apple from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $217.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Raymond James Financial cut their price target on Apple from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price target on Apple to $245.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $234.95.

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.

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