Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Has $5.77 Billion Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA has reduced its stake in Apple Inc. by 2.6% in Q1, now owning approximately 25.97 million shares worth about $5.77 billion, making it the firm's fourth-largest holding.
• Apple recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 0.4% and a payout ratio of 15.78%.
• Analysts have varied sentiments on Apple, with a current consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $237.37, indicating potential market activity ahead.

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA decreased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,966,650 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 687,208 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up 1.9% of Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA's portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 0.17% of Apple worth $5,767,972,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Conquis Financial LLC bought a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth $63,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter worth about $65,000. Elite Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Apple in the first quarter worth about $58,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $82,000. Finally, Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $147,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total value of $7,772,047.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at $30,508,538.40. This trade represents a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Scotiabank cut Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Loop Capital cut their price objective on Apple from $230.00 to $226.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $237.37.

Apple Stock Down 0.2%

Apple stock opened at $232.14 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.45 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.16. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $260.10. The business's 50-day moving average price is $215.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $213.08. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $94.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $88.64 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%.Apple's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.40 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders 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 (DPR) is 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.

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