Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Sold by Columbia Asset Management

Columbia Asset Management trimmed its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 3.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 229,898 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 9,245 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 9.0% of Columbia Asset Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Columbia Asset Management’s holdings in Apple were worth $48,421,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AAPL. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 17.9% during the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 31,278 shares in the last quarter. Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Apple during the first quarter worth about $140,000. Hoese & Co LLP raised its stake in Apple by 6.7% during the second quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 912 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $175,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Sage Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Apple in the second quarter worth about $206,000. Finally, Benchmark Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $208,000. 60.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $235.00 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $225.78 and a 200-day moving average of $208.38. The company has a market cap of $3.60 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $164.07 and a 52 week high of $237.49.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.06. Apple had a net margin of 26.44% and a return on equity of 147.15%. The business had revenue of $85.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $84.43 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.26 earnings per share. Apple’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 6.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.43%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on AAPL shares. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $273.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Monness Crespi & Hardt reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $186.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James upped their target price on Apple from $200.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and set a $261.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $239.27.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other Apple news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total value of $20,644,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 191,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,542,136.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 59,730 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.86, for a total value of $13,550,347.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 489,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $111,148,695.84. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 517,924 shares of company stock valued at $114,786,399 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple 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.