Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Purchased by Oak Thistle LLC

Oak Thistle LLC raised its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 129.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,511 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,362 shares during the period. Apple comprises 0.5% of Oak Thistle LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Oak Thistle LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $1,831,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Apple by 0.7% in the first 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 in the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 116,483.5% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 569,554,722 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $74,002,245,000 after acquiring an additional 569,066,184 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 291,538,165 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $56,396,763,000 after acquiring an additional 6,367,053 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Apple by 3.4% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 234,017,381 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $38,589,468,000 after purchasing an additional 7,736,013 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in Apple by 14.2% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 208,655,323 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $27,110,586,000 after purchasing an additional 25,926,552 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Trading Down 1.2 %

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $165.00 on Monday. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $162.80 and a 1 year high of $199.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $174.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $182.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.55 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.70, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.27.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The iPhone maker reported $2.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $119.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $117.99 billion. Apple had a net margin of 26.16% and a return on equity of 156.04%. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.88 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 12th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 9th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $166.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Apple from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Maxim Group started coverage on Apple in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. They set a “hold” rating and a $178.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Apple from $186.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $203.34.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 99,183 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.03, for a total transaction of $16,864,085.49. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,377,407 shares in the company, valued at $574,260,512.21. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Apple news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 99,183 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.03, for a total transaction of $16,864,085.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,377,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $574,260,512.21. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,434,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $802,392,181.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 366,271 shares of company stock worth $63,653,887 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Company Profile

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.