Apple Inc. $AAPL is Consolidated Capital Management LLC's 8th Largest Position

Key Points

• Consolidated Capital Management LLC reduced its position in Apple by 3.9% during Q1, ending with 50,174 shares valued at approximately $11.1 million, which makes it the company's 8th largest holding.
• Several analysts raised their price targets for Apple, with JPMorgan increasing its target from $250 to $255 and maintaining an "overweight" rating, while the stock currently holds a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $237.98.
• Apple recently approved a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, along with a $100 billion share buyback program, indicating confidence in the company's valuation and future growth prospects.

Consolidated Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 3.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 50,174 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 2,012 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 4.6% of Consolidated Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 8th largest position. Consolidated Capital Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $11,145,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AAPL. Tallon Kerry Patrick purchased a new position in Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $1,877,000. First National Bank of Hutchinson grew its position in shares of Apple by 24.6% in the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $8,845,000 after purchasing an additional 6,982 shares during the last quarter. Capital & Planning LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 10.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 27,298 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $6,836,000 after purchasing an additional 2,647 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC boosted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 69,207 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of Apple stock traded down $0.42 on Friday, hitting $232.14. The company had a trading volume of 39,382,353 shares, compared to its average volume of 58,935,340. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $260.10. The company has a market cap of $3.45 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.23, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.16. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $215.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $213.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.14. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 170.91%. The business had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.40 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were given a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 15.78%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on AAPL shares. DA Davidson restated a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Scotiabank lowered shares of Apple to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Monday. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $237.37.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total value of $7,772,047.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. This represents a 20.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

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.