Valley National Advisers Inc. Has $24.67 Million Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Valley National Advisers Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 8.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 111,046 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 10,746 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 4.4% of Valley National Advisers Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Valley National Advisers Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $24,666,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $47,000. Conquis Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $63,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $65,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $82,000. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $96,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAPL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 25th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $217.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on Apple from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $270.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Apple presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $237.60.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total transaction of $7,772,047.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. This trade represents a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ AAPL traded down $1.19 on Friday, hitting $231.59. 56,003,275 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 63,552,584. The business's fifty day moving average is $209.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $213.14. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $260.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.44 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.14, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.87.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.14. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%. The firm had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.64 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.40 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.78%.

Apple announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to buyback $100.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.