Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Purchased by Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC

Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 5.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 61,056 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 3,103 shares during the period. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $13,562,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Drystone LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth $47,000. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth $63,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $65,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $82,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Performance

Apple stock traded up $1.16 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $211.18. The stock had a trading volume of 48,647,642 shares, compared to its average volume of 53,145,744. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $169.21 and a 52-week high of $260.10. The company has a market capitalization of $3.15 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.20. The firm's fifty day moving average is $204.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $215.85. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a return on equity of 167.24% and a net margin of 24.30%. The company had revenue of $95.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $94.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.53 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

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 given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.49%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 16.20%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on AAPL. KeyCorp raised Apple from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. 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. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $235.11.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total value of $933,940.34. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 15,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,233,815.27. This represents a 22.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $941,420.00. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.