Signet Financial Management LLC Has $26.04 Million Stock Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Signet Financial Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 19.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 117,206 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 28,467 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for about 3.5% of Signet Financial Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Signet Financial Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $26,035,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,877,000. First National Bank of Hutchinson raised its position in shares of Apple by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $8,845,000 after purchasing an additional 6,982 shares in the last quarter. Capital & Planning LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 27,298 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $6,836,000 after purchasing an additional 2,647 shares in the last quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 15,035 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,666,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Finally, West Branch Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 154,737 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $38,749,000 after purchasing an additional 1,995 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on AAPL. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Scotiabank lowered shares of Apple to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lowered shares of Apple from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $217.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $235.27.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 4,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $941,214. This represents a 50.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total transaction of $933,940.34. Following the sale, the insider owned 15,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,233,815.27. This trade represents a 22.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Apple Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL traded down $1.25 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $211.16. The stock had a trading volume of 39,713,698 shares, compared to its average volume of 53,392,240. The company has a market capitalization of $3.15 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.20. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $203.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $217.73. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $260.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.82.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.20%.

Apple declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.