Russell Investments Group Ltd. Boosts Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Apple Inc. by 6.0%, now holding approximately $2.83 billion and making Apple its second largest investment.
• Apple reported a quarterly EPS of $1.57, surpassing estimates, with revenues of $94.04 billion during the same period.
• The company recently issued a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, representing a yield of 0.4% and a payout ratio of 15.78%.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 6.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,772,568 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 718,702 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 3.9% of Russell Investments Group Ltd.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.09% of Apple worth $2,833,920,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth $47,000. Elite Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the 1st quarter worth $58,000. Conquis Financial LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at about $63,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at about $65,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at about $82,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of Apple stock traded up $3.89 on Friday, reaching $233.92. The stock had a trading volume of 35,600,487 shares, compared to its average volume of 56,755,895. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.21 and a 1 year high of $260.10. The company has a market cap of $3.47 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The business's 50 day moving average is $221.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $212.48.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.14. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 170.91%. The firm had revenue of $94.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $88.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.40 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is presently 15.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on AAPL shares. Melius Research set a $290.00 price objective on shares of Apple and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Moffett Nathanson raised shares of Apple from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $240.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total value of $7,772,047.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. This represents a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

About Apple

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.