Penn Davis Mcfarland Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Key Points

• Penn Davis Mcfarland Inc. has reduced its stake in Apple Inc. by 1.0%, now holding 184,547 shares valued at approximately $40.99 million.
• Apple's board has approved a $100 billion share buyback plan, indicating management's belief that the stock is undervalued.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.5%, scheduled for payment on August 14.

Penn Davis Mcfarland Inc. cut its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 1.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 184,547 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 1,855 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up 4.8% of Penn Davis Mcfarland Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Penn Davis Mcfarland Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $40,993,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at $63,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $82,000. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $96,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAPL has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Apple from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $240.00 price target (up previously from $230.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on Apple to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $237.60.

Insider Activity

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 transaction of $933,940.34. Following the transaction, 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 the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Up 3.2%

AAPL stock traded up $6.78 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $220.03. The company's stock had a trading volume of 88,530,516 shares, compared to its average volume of 57,598,227. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.27 trillion, a P/E ratio of 33.39, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.16. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $169.21 and a twelve month high of $260.10. The company's fifty day moving average price is $205.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $213.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.14. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%. The business had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $88.64 billion. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.40 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. Apple's payout ratio is currently 15.78%.

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to reacquire up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.