Avantax Planning Partners Inc. Sells 14,608 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Avantax Planning Partners Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 158,632 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 14,608 shares during the period. Apple comprises about 1.4% of Avantax Planning Partners Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Avantax Planning Partners Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $39,725,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Cushing Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,220,000. Gables Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Apple by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. now owns 61,895 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $15,500,000 after acquiring an additional 3,877 shares during the period. Inspire Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 15,319 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $3,836,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the period. Donaldson Capital Management LLC grew its position in Apple by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 556,872 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $139,452,000 after purchasing an additional 1,409 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smith & Howard Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Apple by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Smith & Howard Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,497 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,630,000 after buying an additional 1,013 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Apple

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

Apple Price Performance

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $206.86 on Wednesday. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $260.10. The company has a market capitalization of $3.09 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $205.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $226.43. 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 (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $95.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 160.83%. The business's revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.53 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. Apple's payout ratio is 16.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAPL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Maxim Group lifted their target price on shares of Apple to $215.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $225.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Apple from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Raymond James reduced their target price on shares of Apple from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $235.80.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.