Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Purchased by Liberty Wealth Management LLC

Key Points

• Liberty Wealth Management LLC significantly increased its stake in Apple Inc. by purchasing 2,326,570 shares, boosting its holdings by 1,993.5% during the first quarter, making Apple approximately 10.0% of its portfolio.
• Apple's stock analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a price target averaging $239.05, reflecting optimism among investors despite varying ratings from different analysts.
• Apple announced a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, contributing to an annualized dividend yield of 0.4%, which is part of the company's strategy to return value to shareholders.

Liberty Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 1,993.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,443,279 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 2,326,570 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for about 10.0% of Liberty Wealth Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Liberty Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $542,726,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC now owns 13,815 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,260,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Salus Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 3.9% in the first quarter. Salus Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,310 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $291,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Disciplined Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Disciplined Investments LLC now owns 7,166 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $1,794,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Sharpepoint LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 3.5% in the first quarter. Sharpepoint LLC now owns 1,523 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $322,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Redwood Financial Network Corp raised its stake in shares of Apple by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp now owns 8,720 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,184,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays raised their price objective on Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Apple from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $240.00 price objective (up previously from $230.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Loop Capital cut their price target on shares of Apple from $230.00 to $226.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $238.99.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the business'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 sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. The trade was a 20.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Apple Stock Performance

Apple stock traded down $1.94 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $237.75. The stock had a trading volume of 26,928,241 shares, compared to its average volume of 56,577,613. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $219.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $212.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.53 trillion, a PE ratio of 36.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.11. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $260.10. 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 (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $94.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $88.64 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%.The business's revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.40 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.78%.

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.