Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Purchased by Sard Wealth Management Group LLC

Sard Wealth Management Group LLC grew its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 18.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,248 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 1,907 shares during the period. Apple accounts for 1.8% of Sard Wealth Management Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Sard Wealth Management Group LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $2,721,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Drystone LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Conquis Financial LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $63,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $65,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $82,000. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $96,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Apple Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL traded up $0.92 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $210.87. 18,340,434 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 53,446,253. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The company has a market cap of $3.15 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.85, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.20. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $203.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $218.13. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 167.24%. Apple's revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.53 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.49%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is presently 16.20%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $941,420.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 4,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $941,214. This represents a 50.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The shares were 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 $3,233,815.27. The trade was a 22.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on AAPL shares. China Renaissance started coverage on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $241.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, June 13th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Loop Capital dropped their price target on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Apple to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.