GYL Financial Synergies LLC Purchases 6,614 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

GYL Financial Synergies LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL – Get Rating) by 5.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 118,252 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after buying an additional 6,614 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises 3.3% of GYL Financial Synergies LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. GYL Financial Synergies LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $15,364,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Robinson Value Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. raised its holdings in Apple by 75.4% in the 3rd quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 249 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. Cheyne Capital Management UK LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 200.0% during the third quarter. Cheyne Capital Management UK LLP now owns 275 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $212,000 after acquiring an additional 550 shares during the period. Align Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, HBC Financial Services PLLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 21.7% during the first quarter. HBC Financial Services PLLC now owns 448 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. 57.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 187,730 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.76, for a total value of $29,991,744.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 489,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $78,253,004.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 43,622 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.41, for a total value of $7,215,515.02. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 136,444 shares in the company, valued at $22,569,202.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $29,991,744.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 489,816 shares in the company, valued at $78,253,004.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 439,529 shares of company stock valued at $71,703,657. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the subject of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Apple in a research note on Sunday, March 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $199.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on shares of Apple from $170.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Apple from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 5th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on shares of Apple from $174.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twenty-six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.74.

Apple Stock Down 0.5 %

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $174.20 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $165.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $150.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $124.17 and a one year high of $176.39. The company has a market cap of $2.74 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.29.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $94.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.84 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 165.72% and a net margin of 24.49%. Apple’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.52 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 5.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 4th that allows the company to repurchase $90.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 12th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is 16.30%.

Apple Profile

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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.