Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. Trims Stock Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Montrusco Bolton Investments reduced its Apple stake by 15% in the fourth quarter, selling 139,617 shares and leaving it with 793,410 shares worth about $215.7 million.
• Apple reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $2.01 versus $1.95 expected and revenue of $111.18 billion versus $109.46 billion expected, with revenue up 16.6% year over year.
• The company also raised its dividend to $0.27 per quarter from $0.26, while analysts remain generally positive with a Moderate Buy consensus and a target price near $308.74.

Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. cut its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 15.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 793,410 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 139,617 shares during the period. Apple makes up 2.7% of Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $215,696,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Apple by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,400,790,809 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $311,157,662,000 after acquiring an additional 5,005,297 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Apple by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 601,249,995 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $123,358,461,000 after acquiring an additional 5,224,229 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Apple by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 354,749,794 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $72,506,336,000 after acquiring an additional 4,942,638 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Apple during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $38,942,255,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Apple by 13.3% during the 4th 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 period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total value of $7,661,010.70. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares in the company, valued at $34,934,433.50. This represents a 17.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $421,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,675,650. This represents a 10.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 97,759 shares of company stock worth $24,964,305. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL opened at $308.82 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $4.54 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $269.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $268.63. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $193.46 and a 1-year high of $311.40.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Apple's payout ratio is currently 13.06%.

More Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple continues to be viewed as one of the best long-term large-cap tech names, with reports highlighting strong iPhone demand, its massive installed base, and the potential for Services to drive the next leg of earnings growth. Apple Services story
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive: Evercore ISI reiterated an Outperform rating and raised its price target, while other commentary says Apple can keep compounding earnings and free cash flow as it expands AI features and devices. Analyst commentary
• Positive Sentiment: Apple executives saying the company is still in the “early innings” of spatial computing is reinforcing the view that new product categories could support future growth beyond the iPhone. Spatial computing article
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s legal fight with Epic Games remains a drag on sentiment, as the company asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a contempt order tied to App Store fees. Epic lawsuit article
• Negative Sentiment: Some analysts are becoming more cautious on valuation after Apple’s run to new highs, warning the stock may be due for profit-taking. KeyBanc caution article

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Maxim Group upgraded Apple from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $400.00 target price (up from $350.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Stephens set a $315.00 target price on Apple in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Scotiabank set a $330.00 target price on Apple in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $330.00 target price (up from $315.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $308.74.

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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