RedJay Asset Management Inc. Takes Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• RedJay Asset Management Inc. has acquired a new position in Apple Inc., purchasing 47,000 shares worth approximately $10.4 million, making it the fund's third-largest position at about 5.6% of total holdings.
• Apple Inc. has announced a $100 billion stock buyback plan, indicating the board's belief that its shares are undervalued, along with a recent quarterly dividend payment of $0.26 per share.
• A number of institutional investors have increased their stakes in Apple, with ownership among these investors exceeding 67.73% of the company’s stock.

RedJay Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 47,000 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $10,440,000. Apple comprises 5.6% of RedJay Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position.

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

Insider Transactions at Apple

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Apple from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Apple from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. China Renaissance started coverage on Apple in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $241.00 price objective on the stock. Loop Capital decreased their target price on Apple from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price objective on Apple from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $237.60.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $230.76. 8,640,402 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 57,554,328. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $210.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $212.94. The firm has a market cap of $3.42 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.16. 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 results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $94.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $88.64 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 170.91%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase 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 reacquire up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.78%.

Apple 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.