Professional Advisory Services Inc. Reduces Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Professional Advisory Services Inc. lessened its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 73,621 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 1,645 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up approximately 2.3% of Professional Advisory Services Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Professional Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $16,353,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Drystone LLC purchased a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $63,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $65,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $82,000. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $96,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Apple news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $941,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 4,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $941,214. This trade represents a 50.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at $3,233,815.27. This represents a 22.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Apple Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL traded up $1.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $211.14. 48,631,689 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 53,497,198. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.15 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.20. The business's 50 day moving average is $203.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $218.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 167.24%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.53 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. This is a boost from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple's payout ratio is currently 16.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on AAPL shares. China Renaissance started coverage on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $241.00 price target for the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price target on shares of Apple to $245.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Scotiabank lowered shares of Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $234.95.

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.