Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Acquired by Ledge Wealth Management Inc.

Ledge Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL – Get Rating) by 20.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,612 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,293 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 1.8% of Ledge Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Ledge Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $3,977,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Apple by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,269,995,750 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $221,753,959,000 after buying an additional 8,734,393 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.5% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 80,739,774 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $14,097,970,000 after buying an additional 1,155,915 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 13.1% during the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 71,060,708 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $12,407,910,000 after purchasing an additional 8,230,300 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in Apple by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 48,826,270 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $8,525,555,000 after purchasing an additional 424,839 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG lifted its position in shares of Apple by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 47,737,612 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $6,526,687,000 after acquiring an additional 245,336 shares during the period. 57.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AAPL. UBS Group set a $180.00 price objective on Apple in a research report on Monday, April 3rd. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Apple from $170.00 to $180.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Apple from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th. Atlantic Securities boosted their target price on Apple from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 5th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $205.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, April 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and twenty-seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.29.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 187,730 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.76, for a total transaction of $29,991,744.80. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 489,816 shares in the company, valued at $78,253,004.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,092 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.26, for a total transaction of $708,979.92. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,881,483.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 187,730 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.76, for a total transaction of $29,991,744.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 489,816 shares in the company, valued at $78,253,004.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 439,529 shares of company stock worth $71,703,657 over the last 90 days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Apple Price Performance

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $172.07 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $2.71 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.29. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $124.17 and a 52-week high of $176.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.94. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $163.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $150.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 4th. The iPhone maker reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.08. Apple had a net margin of 24.49% and a return on equity of 165.72%. The business had revenue of $94.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.52 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 15th will be given a $0.24 dividend. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 12th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.30%.

Apple announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase $90.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to repurchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

About Apple

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Apple, Inc engages in the design, manufacture, and sale of smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables and accessories, and other varieties of related services. It operates through the following geographical segments: Americas, Europe, Greater China, Japan, and Rest of Asia Pacific. The Americas segment includes North and South America.