Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 15.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 16,595 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 2,163 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 2.7% of Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $4,156,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AAPL. O Connor Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. O Connor Financial Group LLC now owns 3,578 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $896,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Apple by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 12,221 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,848,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Apple by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 3,775 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $945,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 16,910 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $4,235,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 16,682 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $4,178,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.
Apple Stock Down 1.1 %
Shares of AAPL traded down $2.25 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $196.26. The company had a trading volume of 67,172,446 shares, compared to its average volume of 56,184,954. The stock has a market cap of $2.95 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.15, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27. The company's 50 day moving average price is $210.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $228.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $260.10.
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 earned $1.53 earnings per share. Apple's quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.
Apple Increases Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. This is a boost from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.20%.
Apple announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to repurchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research firms have commented on AAPL. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $225.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Rosenblatt Securities downgraded Apple from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $217.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America reduced their target price on Apple from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Loop Capital lowered their price target on Apple from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Moffett Nathanson reiterated a "sell" rating and set a $188.00 price objective (down from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $235.80.
View Our Latest Research Report on AAPL
Insider Buying and Selling
In other Apple news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.67, for a total value of $8,683,316.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 179,158 shares in the company, valued at $40,072,269.86. The trade was a 17.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total value of $24,184,616.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,295 shares in the company, valued at $733,637,976.75. The trade was a 3.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 187,021 shares of company stock worth $41,760,140 over the last ninety days. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.
About Apple
(
Free Report)
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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