Morton Community Bank Sells 2,319 Shares of Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO)

Morton Community Bank cut its holdings in Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 38,325 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,319 shares during the period. Apollo Global Management makes up about 1.7% of Morton Community Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 5th largest position. Morton Community Bank’s holdings in Apollo Global Management were worth $6,330,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Apollo Global Management by 60.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,900,562 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $479,057,000 after purchasing an additional 1,094,464 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Apollo Global Management by 42.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,640,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $436,148,000 after acquiring an additional 782,700 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Apollo Global Management by 15,187.7% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 639,027 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $105,542,000 after acquiring an additional 634,847 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Apollo Global Management by 813.6% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 542,780 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $89,646,000 after acquiring an additional 483,369 shares during the period. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP increased its position in Apollo Global Management by 530.9% in the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 402,228 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $50,242,000 after acquiring an additional 338,472 shares during the period. 77.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on APO. Barclays lifted their price objective on Apollo Global Management from $174.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Apollo Global Management from $196.00 to $194.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. UBS Group raised Apollo Global Management to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Apollo Global Management from $157.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Apollo Global Management from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $165.74.

Apollo Global Management Price Performance

APO stock opened at $132.63 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $159.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $150.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market cap of $75.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.14, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.66. Apollo Global Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $95.11 and a 1 year high of $189.49.

Apollo Global Management Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $0.4625 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.39%. Apollo Global Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apollo Global Management

In other news, CFO Martin Kelly sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.28, for a total transaction of $791,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 377,164 shares in the company, valued at $59,697,517.92. This represents a 1.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 8.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Apollo Global Management Profile

Apollo Global Management, Inc is a private equity firm specializing in investments in credit, private equity, infrastructure, secondaries and real estate markets. The firm prefers to invest in private and public markets. The firm’s private equity investments include traditional buyouts, recapitalization, distressed buyouts and debt investments in real estate, corporate partner buyouts, distressed asset, corporate carve-outs, middle market, growth, venture capital, turnaround, bridge, corporate restructuring, special situation, acquisition, and industry consolidation transactions.