Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC reduced its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 14.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 54,276 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 8,827 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for about 3.3% of Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $12,068,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC increased its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. raised its position in Apple by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 3,775 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $945,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Family Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Apple by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 16,910 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $4,235,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA lifted its position 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 valued at $4,178,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC now owns 15,940 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,992,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Apple Trading Up 1.3%
Shares of AAPL stock traded up $2.65 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $207.82. 78,634,226 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 53,588,359. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.10 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.20. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.21 and a 12-month high of $260.10. The company's 50-day moving average price is $203.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $219.45. 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 quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 167.24%. The business had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.53 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.
Apple Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors 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 0.50%. This is a boost from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple's payout ratio is presently 16.20%.
Apple announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to repurchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AAPL. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price target on Apple to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on shares of Apple from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Scotiabank cut shares of Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $234.95.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on AAPL
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 35,493 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.01, for a total transaction of $7,950,786.93. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 390,059 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $87,377,116.59. The trade was a 8.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 4,569 shares in the company, valued at $941,214. This represents a 50.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 191,507 shares of company stock worth $42,694,080 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.
Apple Profile
(
Free Report)
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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