Bard Financial Services Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Bard Financial Services Inc. reduced its stake in Apple Inc. by 2.5% during the second quarter, owning 463,863 shares worth approximately $95.17 million, making Apple its biggest position.
• Analysts have mixed sentiments on Apple's stock, with a target price ranging from $200 to $240 and an overall average rating of "Moderate Buy."
• Apple recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, reflecting an annual yield of 0.4% and a low dividend payout ratio of 15.78%.

Bard Financial Services Inc. decreased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 463,863 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 11,865 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 11.4% of Bard Financial Services Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its biggest position. Bard Financial Services Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $95,171,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC raised its position in Apple by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC now owns 13,815 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $3,260,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Salus Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Apple by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Salus Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,310 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $291,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Sharpepoint LLC raised its position in Apple by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Sharpepoint LLC now owns 1,523 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $322,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Mission Hills Financial Advisory LLC raised its position in Apple by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Mission Hills Financial Advisory LLC now owns 4,016 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $892,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Redwood Financial Network Corp raised its position in Apple by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp now owns 8,720 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $2,184,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on AAPL shares. Morgan Stanley set a $240.00 target price on Apple and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Phillip Securities lowered shares of Apple from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating and set a $200.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Apple from $190.67 to $205.82 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $242.74.

Apple Stock Up 3.2%

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $245.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.87. The company has a market capitalization of $3.64 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.11. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $260.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $224.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $212.42.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $88.64 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.40 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total value of $7,772,047.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at $30,508,538.40. This trade represents a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Apple 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.

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