Captrust Financial Advisors Increases Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Captrust Financial Advisors grew its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 4.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,169,675 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 235,670 shares during the period. Apple makes up about 3.7% of Captrust Financial Advisors' investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Captrust Financial Advisors' holdings in Apple were worth $1,294,590,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. O Connor Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. O Connor Financial Group LLC now owns 3,578 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $896,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC grew its holdings in Apple by 0.3% during 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 during the last quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. raised its position 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 during the period. Family Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 16,682 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $4,178,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Price Performance

NASDAQ AAPL traded down $2.78 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $195.64. 38,709,101 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 54,633,249. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $202.28 and a 200-day moving average of $222.66. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $260.10. The stock has a market cap of $2.92 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a return on equity of 167.24% and a net margin of 24.30%. The company had revenue of $95.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $94.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.53 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 16.20%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on AAPL shares. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Rosenblatt Securities lowered Apple from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $217.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Apple from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday. Finally, Raymond James Financial cut their price target on Apple from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued 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 company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $234.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total transaction of $24,184,616.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at $733,637,976.75. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $941,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 4,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at $941,214. This trade represents a 50.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 191,507 shares of company stock worth $42,694,080. 0.06% of the stock is currently 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.