Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stock Position Lowered by Violich Capital Management Inc.

Violich Capital Management Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 271,399 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 12,498 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up 8.5% of Violich Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $52,252,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC increased its position in Apple by 364.1% during the 3rd quarter. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC now owns 42,903 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $7,345,000 after purchasing an additional 33,659 shares in the last quarter. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC now owns 31,111 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $5,326,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Kirr Marbach & Co. LLC IN purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the third quarter worth about $265,000. Atlas Brown Inc. raised its position in shares of Apple by 0.4% in the third quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 75,888 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $12,993,000 after buying an additional 314 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 49.7% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 62,955 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $10,779,000 after buying an additional 20,911 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $196.00 target price (up from $189.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on Apple from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday. Barclays lifted their price target on Apple from $158.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $204.11.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other Apple news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total transaction of $18,094,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,434,576 shares in the company, valued at $802,392,181.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total transaction of $9,244,782.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 136,572 shares in the company, valued at $23,068,376.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total transaction of $18,094,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,434,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $802,392,181.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 366,271 shares of company stock valued at $63,653,887. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL stock opened at $183.38 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.83 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $172.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $181.67. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $164.07 and a 52-week high of $199.62.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.02. Apple had a net margin of 26.31% and a return on equity of 153.25%. The firm had revenue of $90.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $90.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.52 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.93%.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 2nd that allows the company to buyback $110.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.