Advance Capital Management Inc. Has $5.11 Million Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Advance Capital Management Inc. decreased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 7.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 29,799 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 2,510 shares during the period. Apple comprises about 0.4% of Advance Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Advance Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $5,110,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Wyrmwood Management LLC boosted its stake in Apple by 69.0% in the 4th quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 118.0% during the 4th quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 657.1% during the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $82,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the period. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $85,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $214.29 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.29 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.25. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $164.07 and a one year high of $220.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $186.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $184.57.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.02. Apple had a net margin of 26.31% and a return on equity of 148.33%. The company had revenue of $90.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.52 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 6.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, May 2nd that allows the company to buyback $110.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the iPhone maker to repurchase up to 3.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This is an increase from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.47%. Apple’s payout ratio is presently 15.55%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total transaction of $9,244,782.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 136,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,068,376.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.58, for a total transaction of $14,368,500.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,359,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $835,207,570.08. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total transaction of $9,244,782.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 136,572 shares in the company, valued at $23,068,376.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 346,270 shares of company stock worth $60,880,196. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Loop Capital decreased their target price on shares of Apple from $185.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 1st. DZ Bank reissued a “hold” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Wedbush lifted their target price on shares of Apple from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Apple from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $208.06.

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.