Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stock Position Boosted by Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Apple Inc. by 2.1%, owning a total of 59,653 shares worth approximately $13.25 million.
• Multiple analysts have raised their price targets for Apple's stock, with Monness Crespi & Hardt increasing it to $270.00 and JPMorgan Chase raising theirs to $255.00, while maintaining an 'overweight' rating.
• Apple has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, with an annualized yield of 0.5%, and has initiated a $100 billion stock buyback program.

Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 59,653 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after buying an additional 1,238 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for approximately 2.7% of Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $13,250,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter valued at about $46,868,648,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Apple by 25,934.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 60,066,398 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $133,425,490,000 after acquiring an additional 59,835,676 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Apple by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,395,785,512 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $349,532,608,000 after acquiring an additional 49,168,843 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Apple by 23,555.4% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 21,055,240 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $5,272,653,000 after acquiring an additional 20,966,232 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Apple by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $42,918,365,000 after acquiring an additional 20,079,472 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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 stock was sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total transaction of $933,940.34. Following the transaction, the insider owned 15,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This trade represents a 22.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL traded up $0.97 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $203.35. 74,983,799 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 57,129,035. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.04 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.16. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $260.10. The company's 50 day moving average is $205.37 and its 200 day moving average is $213.50.

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

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 11th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on AAPL shares. Scotiabank cut shares of Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. DA Davidson restated a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Apple from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $237.25.

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.