Blue Capital Inc. Makes New Investment in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Blue Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 10,540 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $2,639,000. Apple comprises approximately 1.9% of Blue Capital Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. O Connor Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Apple by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. O Connor Financial Group LLC now owns 3,578 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $896,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC now owns 13,815 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,260,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 3,775 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $945,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Apple by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 16,910 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $4,235,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA raised its stake in Apple by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 16,682 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $4,178,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL traded up $1.97 on Monday, reaching $198.42. The company had a trading volume of 42,787,259 shares, compared to its average volume of 54,695,327. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $169.21 and a 52-week high of $260.10. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $201.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $222.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.96 trillion, a PE ratio of 31.50, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.22. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $95.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.53 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $0.26 dividend. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.20%.

Apple announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Loop Capital reduced their target price on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Maxim Group boosted their price objective on Apple to $215.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Barclays lowered their price objective on Apple from $197.00 to $173.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Three 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $234.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This trade represents a 22.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $941,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,569 shares in the company, valued at $941,214. This trade represents a 50.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 191,507 shares of company stock valued at $42,694,080 over the last quarter. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.