Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stake Trimmed by Merrion Investment Management Co LLC

Merrion Investment Management Co LLC lowered its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 53,356 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 570 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 7.7% of Merrion Investment Management Co LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Merrion Investment Management Co LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $11,238,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $33,912,466,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Apple by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,318,064,349 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $253,766,929,000 after acquiring an additional 18,067,216 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new position in Apple in the 1st quarter worth about $3,026,492,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 23,076.4% during the first quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC now owns 9,240,214 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,584,512,000 after acquiring an additional 9,200,345 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Apple by 158.3% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 11,532,438 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,977,582,000 after acquiring an additional 7,067,379 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $222.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.95. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $223.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $198.63. The stock has a market cap of $3.38 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.24. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $164.07 and a one year high of $237.23.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.06. Apple had a return on equity of 147.15% and a net margin of 26.44%. The firm had revenue of $85.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $84.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.26 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 6.7 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 15.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total value of $20,644,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 191,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,542,136.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Apple news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total transaction of $20,644,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 8,706 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total value of $1,958,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 15,419 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,469,275. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 113,884 shares of company stock valued at $23,723,887 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the topic of several research reports. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and set a $255.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Moffett Nathanson initiated coverage on Apple in a research note on Monday, August 19th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $211.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $238.62.

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.