St. Louis Financial Planners Asset Management LLC Has $2.70 Million Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

St. Louis Financial Planners Asset Management LLC decreased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 11.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,180 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 1,729 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for approximately 2.1% of St. Louis Financial Planners Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. St. Louis Financial Planners Asset Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $2,704,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% during the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth about $47,000. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 1st quarter worth about $58,000. Conquis Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth about $63,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth about $65,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $256.08 on Tuesday. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.21 and a 12-month high of $260.10. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $225.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $212.22. 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 has a market cap of $3.80 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.86, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.11.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its 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. The business had revenue of $94.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $88.64 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.40 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 34,821 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.20, for a total transaction of $7,772,047.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 136,687 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,508,538.40. The trade was a 20.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AAPL. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, September 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $290.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $240.00 price objective on shares of Apple and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $190.67 to $205.82 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 8th. Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Apple from $300.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Apple from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. 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 issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $244.03.

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.

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