Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stake Boosted by Vinva Investment Management Ltd

Vinva Investment Management Ltd grew its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 12.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 764,075 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 83,997 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 7.5% of Vinva Investment Management Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Vinva Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Apple were worth $192,700,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Drystone LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda acquired a new position in Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new position in shares of Apple during the third quarter valued at $77,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at $82,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Apple Stock Down 0.5%

AAPL traded down $0.94 during trading on Friday, hitting $199.01. 70,744,759 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 56,280,416. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $169.21 and a fifty-two week high of $260.10. The stock has a market cap of $2.97 trillion, a P/E ratio of 31.59, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The business's 50 day moving average is $203.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $225.20.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. The firm had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.53 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were given a $0.26 dividend. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is presently 16.20%.

Apple declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the iPhone maker to repurchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Maxim Group boosted their price objective on shares of Apple to $215.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Apple from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Argus raised Apple to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. China Renaissance began coverage on Apple in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $241.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Raymond James reduced their target price on Apple from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $235.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total value of $24,184,616.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,295 shares in the company, valued at $733,637,976.75. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $941,420.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,569 shares in the company, valued at $941,214. The trade was a 50.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 191,507 shares of company stock worth $42,694,080. Corporate 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.