Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Spirepoint Private Client LLC's 2nd Largest Position

Key Points

• Spirepoint Private Client LLC reduced its stake in Apple Inc. by 0.9%, now holding 144,181 shares valued at $32,027,000, making it the second largest holding in their portfolio.
• Apple's board authorized a stock buyback program worth $100 billion, reflecting confidence in the stock's value, while also declaring a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share.
• The latest earnings report revealed an EPS of $1.57, exceeding estimates, with revenue up 9.6% year-over-year at $94.04 billion.

Spirepoint Private Client LLC lowered its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 144,181 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 1,253 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 4.2% of Spirepoint Private Client LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Spirepoint Private Client LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $32,027,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $1,877,000. First National Bank of Hutchinson boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $8,845,000 after buying an additional 6,982 shares during the period. Capital & Planning LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 27,298 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $6,836,000 after buying an additional 2,647 shares during the period. Eagle Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Apple by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $13,544,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Apple by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $134,554,000 after purchasing an additional 69,207 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday. China Renaissance started coverage on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $241.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded shares of Apple from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $237.25.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL traded up $0.83 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $204.18. 7,744,827 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 56,777,820. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $205.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $213.31. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $260.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.05 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 analyst estimates of $88.64 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%. Apple's revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to buyback $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total value of $933,940.34. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 15,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,233,815.27. This represents a 22.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company 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.