Ewa LLC Purchases 5,660 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Key Points

• Ewa LLC has increased its holdings in Apple Inc. by 21.3% in the first quarter, now owning 32,265 shares valued at approximately $7.17 million.
• Apple Inc. reported $1.57 EPS for the recent quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates and achieving $94.04 billion in revenue, a 9.6% year-over-year growth.
• The company announced a $100 billion share repurchase program, indicating the board's belief that the stock is undervalued.

EWA LLC raised its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 21.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 32,265 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 5,660 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 2.7% of EWA LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. EWA LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $7,167,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth approximately $46,868,648,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Apple by 25,934.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 60,066,398 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $133,425,490,000 after purchasing 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 worth $349,532,608,000 after acquiring an additional 49,168,843 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 23,555.4% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 21,055,240 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $5,272,653,000 after acquiring an additional 20,966,232 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of Apple 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 of the company's stock, valued at $3,233,815.27. The trade was a 22.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Trading Down 2.5%

AAPL traded down $5.19 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $202.38. The company's stock had a trading volume of 97,423,066 shares, compared to its average volume of 44,912,472. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The stock has a market cap of $3.02 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.17. The business's 50-day moving average is $205.37 and its 200-day moving average is $213.77. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $169.21 and a fifty-two week high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $88.64 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 172.48%. The firm's revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.40 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback 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 generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Apple to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Apple from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Two investment 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $237.25.

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.