Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Centerpoint Advisory Group's 3rd Largest Position

Key Points

• Centerpoint Advisory Group reduced its stake in Apple Inc. by 8.5%, selling 2,049 shares during the first quarter, leaving them with 22,009 shares, valued at approximately $4.89 million.
• Apple reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.57, exceeding analysts' estimates of $1.43, with revenues of $94.04 billion, up 9.6% year-over-year.
• The company's board approved a $100 billion share buyback plan, indicating confidence in the stock's valuation, alongside a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share with a yield of 0.5%.

Centerpoint Advisory Group cut its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 8.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 22,009 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 2,049 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for approximately 4.8% of Centerpoint Advisory Group's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Centerpoint Advisory Group's holdings in Apple were worth $4,889,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Tallon Kerry Patrick bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth $1,877,000. First National Bank of Hutchinson lifted its position in shares of Apple by 24.6% during the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $8,845,000 after purchasing an additional 6,982 shares during the last quarter. Capital & Planning LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 27,298 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $6,836,000 after purchasing an additional 2,647 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $13,544,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $134,554,000 after purchasing an additional 69,207 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total transaction of $933,940.34. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank downgraded Apple to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday. KeyCorp upgraded Apple from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Apple from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Apple from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $237.25.

Apple Trading Down 2.5%

Shares of AAPL traded down $5.19 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $202.38. The company had a trading volume of 97,423,066 shares, compared to its average volume of 44,912,472. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $260.10. The stock has a market cap of $3.02 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.17. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $205.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $213.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.14. Apple had a return on equity of 172.48% and a net margin of 24.30%. The business had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $88.64 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.40 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $100.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the iPhone maker to repurchase up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.78%.

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.