Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida Lowers Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida trimmed its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 16.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,811 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 2,435 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 2.5% of Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida's investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida's holdings in Apple were worth $2,846,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AAPL. Tallon Kerry Patrick bought a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,877,000. First National Bank of Hutchinson increased its position in Apple by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $8,845,000 after buying an additional 6,982 shares during the period. Capital & Planning LLC increased its position in Apple by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 27,298 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $6,836,000 after buying an additional 2,647 shares during the period. Eagle Capital Management LLC increased 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 worth $13,544,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the period. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC increased 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 worth $134,554,000 after buying an additional 69,207 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AAPL. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on Apple from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Scotiabank lowered Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 25th. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a "neutral" rating and set a $217.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $237.60.

Apple Stock Down 0.5%

AAPL stock traded down $1.19 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $231.59. The company had a trading volume of 56,003,275 shares, compared to its average volume of 63,552,584. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $209.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $213.14. The company 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. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $260.10.

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

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 15.78%.

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. This trade represents a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.