Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Symphony Financial Ltd. Co.'s 7th Largest Position

Key Points

• Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. reduced its stake in Apple Inc. by 62.1%, now holding 28,983 shares valued at approximately $6.44 million, making Apple its 7th largest investment.
• Other institutional investors have shown significant activity in Apple, with GAMMA Investing LLC increasing its stake by over 25,000% and Vanguard Group Inc. purchasing an additional 49 million shares.
• Apple's recent earnings report showed a 24.30% net margin and revenue growth of 9.6% year-over-year, with quarterly earnings of $1.57 per share exceeding estimates.

Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. trimmed its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 62.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 28,983 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 47,548 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 3.7% of Symphony Financial Ltd. Co.'s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co.'s holdings in Apple were worth $6,438,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,395,785,512 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $349,532,608,000 after acquiring an additional 49,168,843 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 340,164,913 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $84,999,145,000 after purchasing an additional 6,307,413 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth about $46,868,648,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Apple by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $42,918,365,000 after buying an additional 20,079,472 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 104,706,358 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $26,220,566,000 after buying an additional 13,137,968 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of AAPL traded up $0.83 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $204.18. 7,744,827 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 56,777,820. The stock has a market cap of $3.05 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.17. The stock's 50-day moving average is $205.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $213.31. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $260.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

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

Apple declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th will be given a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is presently 15.78%.

Insider Activity

In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,486 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total transaction of $933,940.34. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 15,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,233,815.27. This trade represents a 22.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Apple from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. China Renaissance initiated coverage on Apple in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $241.00 price objective on the stock. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $237.25.

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.