Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stock Position Lowered by ERn Financial LLC

Key Points

• ERn Financial LLC reduced its stake in Apple Inc. by 17.0%, selling 8,605 shares in the first quarter and holding 42,135 shares thereafter.
• Apple's Board of Directors authorized a stock buyback plan allowing for the repurchase of up to $100.00 billion worth of shares, indicating confidence in the stock's valuation.
• Apple announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.26 per share, up from $0.25, reflecting a dividend yield of 0.49%.

ERn Financial LLC trimmed its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 17.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,135 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 8,605 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 1.5% of ERn Financial LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. ERn Financial LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $9,360,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Apple by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,395,785,512 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $349,532,608,000 after buying an additional 49,168,843 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 340,164,913 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $84,999,145,000 after acquiring an additional 6,307,413 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,868,648,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Apple by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $42,918,365,000 after purchasing an additional 20,079,472 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 104,706,358 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $26,220,566,000 after purchasing an additional 13,137,968 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owned 15,533 shares in the company, valued at $3,233,815.27. This trade represents a 22.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL traded down $2.22 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $209.05. 43,674,703 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 43,746,808. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $260.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $205.10 and a 200 day moving average of $214.16. The stock has a market cap of $3.12 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.56, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.20.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $95.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $94.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 167.24%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.53 EPS. On average, sell-side 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 allows the company to buyback $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the subject of a number of research reports. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Apple from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. China Renaissance began coverage on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $241.00 target price for the company. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Apple from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Scotiabank downgraded shares of Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $234.94.

Apple Company 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.