Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.'s 2nd Largest Position

Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. cut its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 143,234 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 2,998 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 4.9% of Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $35,869,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. HMV Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at $3,894,000. First National Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. First National Trust Co now owns 595,623 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $149,156,000 after purchasing an additional 4,516 shares during the period. Brown Miller Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Brown Miller Wealth Management LLC now owns 113,873 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $28,516,000 after purchasing an additional 1,137 shares during the period. Sienna Gestion raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 860.8% during the fourth quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 430,191 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $107,713,000 after purchasing an additional 385,419 shares during the period. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth $1,730,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL traded up $4.87 on Tuesday, reaching $200.14. The company had a trading volume of 31,401,414 shares, compared to its average volume of 56,160,519. The company has a fifty day moving average of $204.64 and a 200-day moving average of $225.71. The company has a market capitalization of $2.99 trillion, a P/E ratio of 31.76, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year 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 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 160.83%. The company had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.53 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $100.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were given 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.20%.

Insider Activity

In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total transaction of $933,940.34. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This represents a 22.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.67, for a total transaction of $8,683,316.74. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 179,158 shares of the company's stock, valued at $40,072,269.86. This represents a 17.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 191,507 shares of company stock worth $42,694,080. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AAPL. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. China Renaissance began coverage on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $241.00 target price on the stock. DA Davidson increased 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. Maxim Group increased their target price on shares of Apple to $215.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Raymond James dropped their target price on shares of Apple from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $235.80.

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.