Trust Co. of Vermont Has $126.22 Million Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Key Points

• Trust Co. of Vermont reduced its Apple Inc. holdings by 1.4%, selling 8,241 shares, and now holds 568,221 shares valued at approximately $126.2 million, making Apple its largest investment.
• Apple's quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $1.57, exceeding analyst estimates, with revenue increasing by 9.6% year-over-year to $94.04 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, to be paid on August 14, and has approved a share buyback program authorizing up to $100 billion in stock repurchases.

Trust Co. of Vermont trimmed its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 1.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 568,221 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 8,241 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises 6.3% of Trust Co. of Vermont's investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Trust Co. of Vermont's holdings in Apple were worth $126,219,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth about $47,000. Conquis Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $63,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at about $65,000. Pillar Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at about $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 institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL traded up $2.56 on Tuesday, reaching $229.74. 41,781,765 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 57,888,410. The company has a fifty day moving average of $207.35 and a 200-day moving average of $213.10. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $169.21 and a twelve month high of $260.10. The company has a market capitalization of $3.41 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.86, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced 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. 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 analyst estimates of $88.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.40 EPS. The business's revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $100.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the iPhone maker to reacquire up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Apple from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Apple from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. KeyCorp raised Apple from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Apple from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $240.00 price target (up previously from $230.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Apple has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $237.60.

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.