Donaldson Capital Management LLC Purchases 1,409 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Donaldson Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 0.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 556,872 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 1,409 shares during the period. Apple comprises 5.3% of Donaldson Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its largest holding. Donaldson Capital Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $139,452,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Apple by 10.6% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 584,010,284 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $136,074,372,000 after buying an additional 55,935,105 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 5.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 363,859,362 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $84,779,231,000 after purchasing an additional 18,224,005 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 333,857,500 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $77,542,863,000 after acquiring an additional 20,483,787 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 98,099,411 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $24,566,054,000 after buying an additional 3,156,680 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 91,568,390 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $21,335,435,000 after purchasing an additional 1,742,087 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total value of $933,940.34. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This represents a 22.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 35,493 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 390,059 shares in the company, valued at $87,377,116.59. This represents a 8.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 191,507 shares of company stock valued at $42,694,080. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $206.86 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.09 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $205.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $226.43. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $169.21 and a twelve month high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $94.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.53 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 16.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued an "underperform" rating and set a $170.62 price objective (up from $167.88) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Scotiabank lowered Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Loop Capital cut their price target on Apple from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Maxim Group lifted their price objective on Apple to $215.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $235.80.

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.

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