Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Purchased by Chapin Davis Inc.

Chapin Davis Inc. boosted its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 3.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 103,737 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 3,501 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up 7.9% of Chapin Davis Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Chapin Davis Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $23,044,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Apple by 3.7% during the fourth 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. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Apple by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 340,164,913 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $84,999,145,000 after acquiring an additional 6,307,413 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at about $46,868,648,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Apple by 13.3% during the fourth 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. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in Apple by 14.3% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 104,706,358 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $26,220,566,000 after acquiring an additional 13,137,968 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Trading Down 2.5%

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $202.38 on Friday. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $205.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $213.60. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $169.21 and a 52-week high of $260.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.02 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.71, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.14. Apple had a return on equity of 172.48% and a net margin of 24.30%. The firm had revenue of $94.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $88.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.40 earnings per share. Apple's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

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

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AAPL. Citigroup upped their target price on Apple from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays upped their target price on Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on Apple from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Apple from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Apple from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, fifteen 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 currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $237.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider directly owned 15,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This represents a 22.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

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.

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