Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC Reduces Stock Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Meadowbrook Advisors Group cut its Apple stake by 6.9% in the first quarter, selling 4,035 shares and leaving it with 54,801 shares worth about $13.9 million. Apple remains the firm’s largest holding, making up 8.3% of its portfolio.
• Apple reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $2.01 per share topping estimates and revenue of $111.18 billion exceeding expectations. Revenue rose 16.6% year over year, and analysts now expect full-year EPS of 8.74.
• The company recently raised its dividend to $0.27 per share, while insiders have also been selling shares and Wall Street remains broadly constructive. Apple has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $314.85.

Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC lowered its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 6.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 54,801 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 4,035 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 8.3% of Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $13,908,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Isthmus Partners LLC increased its stake in Apple by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 97,177 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 5,808 shares during the last quarter. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% during the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Finally, Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth $69,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Trading Down 6.1%

Shares of AAPL opened at $275.15 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $199.26 and a fifty-two week high of $317.40. The business has a 50-day moving average of $292.16 and a 200 day moving average of $273.12. The firm has a market cap of $4.04 trillion, a P/E ratio of 33.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $111.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.46 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. The company's revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.65 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 13.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $421,850.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,675,650. The trade was a 10.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total value of $369,460.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,226,770. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 97,875 shares of company stock valued at $24,998,541 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on AAPL. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Robert W. Baird set a $310.00 target price on Apple in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Oppenheimer reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $314.85.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts say the price hikes could help Apple protect margins by passing through rising component costs, and long-term bulls still view the company as financially strong. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s AI strategy remains a work in progress, with some coverage saying the company’s AI upgrade likely will not be a major near-term catalyst for the stock. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Apple’s decision to raise Mac and iPad prices has sparked concern about weaker demand and “demand friction,” especially if consumers push back on higher-priced devices. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market weakness and a tech selloff added pressure, with Apple leading the downside among major technology names. Article Title

About Apple

Apple Inc NASDAQ: AAPL is a multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, founded in 1976 by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. The company designs, develops and sells consumer electronics, software and services. Over its history Apple has evolved from personal computers to a broad portfolio that spans mobile devices, wearables, home entertainment and digital services.

Apple's principal hardware products include the iPhone smartphone, iPad tablet, Mac personal computers, Apple Watch wearable devices and a range of accessories such as AirPods and HomePod.

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