Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Sold by Navalign LLC

Navalign LLC lessened its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL – Get Rating) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 120,019 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 1,526 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up approximately 6.4% of Navalign LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Navalign LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $15,594,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can acquired a new stake in Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,890,884,000. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 53.0% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 30,235,823 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $4,178,590,000 after purchasing an additional 10,471,342 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Apple by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,269,995,750 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $221,753,959,000 after purchasing an additional 8,734,393 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth $1,075,599,000. Finally, Swiss National Bank raised its stake in shares of Apple by 13.1% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 71,060,708 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $12,407,910,000 after purchasing an additional 8,230,300 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.60% of the company’s stock.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL stock opened at $172.99 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $124.17 and a one year high of $176.39. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $166.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $151.40. 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 company has a market capitalization of $2.72 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.29.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL – Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 4th. The iPhone maker reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $94.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $92.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.52 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 5.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

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

Apple declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, May 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase $90.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Loop Capital cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on Apple from $170.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 5th. Cowen lowered their price objective on Apple from $200.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on Apple from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 5th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group upped their price target on Apple from $184.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twenty-six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.74.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 56,072 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.17, for a total transaction of $9,261,412.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,052 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $541,766,188.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 56,072 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.17, for a total transaction of $9,261,412.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,052 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $541,766,188.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,092 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 owns 33,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,881,483.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 439,529 shares of company stock valued at $71,703,657 over the last 90 days. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.