Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Sold by Corundum Trust Company INC

Key Points

• Corundum Trust Company INC reduced its position in Apple Inc. by 15.4%, owning 6,546 shares valued at approximately $1.45 million after selling 1,195 shares in the first quarter.
• Apple reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, surpassing estimates, and had a revenue of $94.04 billion, marking a 9.6% increase from the previous year.
• Apple's board authorized a $100 billion share repurchase plan, indicating management’s belief that the stock is undervalued.

Corundum Trust Company INC lowered its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 15.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,546 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 1,195 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 4.2% of Corundum Trust Company INC's portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Corundum Trust Company INC's holdings in Apple were worth $1,454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC now owns 13,815 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,260,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 16,910 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $4,235,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.3% in 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 purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC now owns 15,940 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $3,992,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Finally, Disciplined Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Disciplined Investments LLC now owns 7,166 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $1,794,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on AAPL. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Apple from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on shares of Apple from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $270.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Scotiabank downgraded shares of Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Two investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $237.60.

Apple Stock Performance

Apple stock traded up $2.56 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $229.74. The company had a trading volume of 41,781,765 shares, compared to its average volume of 57,888,410. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $260.10. The company has a 50 day moving average of $207.35 and a 200-day moving average of $213.10. The firm has a market cap of $3.41 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.86, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.16.

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

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock 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 purchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Announces Dividend

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

About Apple

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.