GAM Holding AG Reduces Stock Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

GAM Holding AG trimmed its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 92,787 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 180 shares during the period. Apple makes up 1.3% of GAM Holding AG’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. GAM Holding AG’s holdings in Apple were worth $17,864,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wyrmwood Management LLC boosted its position in Apple by 69.0% in the fourth quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC boosted its position in Apple by 118.0% in the fourth quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. PayPay Securities Corp boosted its position in Apple by 70.2% in the third quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 509 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Cordant Inc. boosted its position in Apple by 27.7% in the third quarter. Cordant Inc. now owns 645 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $132,000. Institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

Apple stock opened at $169.89 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $162.80 and a 1-year high of $199.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.62 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.27. The company’s 50-day moving average is $173.30 and its 200 day moving average is $181.85.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The iPhone maker reported $2.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.09. Apple had a net margin of 26.16% and a return on equity of 156.04%. The company had revenue of $119.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $117.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.88 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 6.54 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Investors of record on Monday, February 12th were given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 9th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 4,434,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $802,392,181.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $23,068,376.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the director now directly owns 4,434,576 shares in the company, valued at $802,392,181.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 366,271 shares of company stock valued at $63,653,887 in the last ninety days. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. DZ Bank reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Apple from $215.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, February 2nd. DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $166.00 target price for the company. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $225.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, February 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $203.05.

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.