Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Schnieders Capital Management LLC's 2nd Largest Position

Schnieders Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 5.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 155,691 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 9,775 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 7.7% of Schnieders Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Schnieders Capital Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $38,988,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 10.6% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 584,010,284 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $136,074,372,000 after buying an additional 55,935,105 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 333,857,500 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $77,542,863,000 after acquiring an additional 20,483,787 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in Apple by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 363,859,362 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $84,779,231,000 after acquiring an additional 18,224,005 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC boosted its stake in Apple by 25,285.2% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 9,628,864 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,411,260,000 after purchasing an additional 9,590,933 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Apple by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 94,942,731 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $22,121,656,000 after purchasing an additional 5,893,741 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $733,637,976.75. This represents a 3.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,570 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $941,420.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 4,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $941,214. The trade was a 50.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 187,021 shares of company stock worth $41,760,140. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. DA Davidson raised their target price on Apple from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Rosenblatt Securities cut Apple from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $217.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Monness Crespi & Hardt reduced their target price on shares of Apple from $260.00 to $245.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Wedbush lowered shares of Apple from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Apple from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $235.80.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL traded up $1.04 during trading on Friday, reaching $198.53. 36,406,804 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 56,093,894. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.21 and a 12-month high of $260.10. The company's 50-day moving average is $208.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $227.36. 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 company has a market cap of $2.98 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.27.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $95.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 160.83%. Apple's revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.53 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 of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. This is a boost from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apple's dividend payout ratio is presently 16.20%.

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.