Advisory Services & Investments LLC Cuts Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Advisory Services & Investments LLC decreased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 6.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,942 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 187 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 0.5% of Advisory Services & Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Advisory Services & Investments LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $686,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AAPL. Bull Oak Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 252.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Apple during the second quarter worth $42,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc increased its position in Apple by 88.9% during the third quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 306 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the third quarter valued at $110,000. Finally, Cordant Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 34.3% in the 3rd quarter. Cordant Inc. now owns 678 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $158,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $236.00 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $164.07 and a twelve month high of $260.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $241.68 and a 200 day moving average of $230.87. The stock has a market cap of $3.55 trillion, a P/E ratio of 38.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.20.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a net margin of 23.97% and a return on equity of 152.94%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.34 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.45%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on AAPL shares. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $225.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Moffett Nathanson restated a “sell” rating and set a $188.00 price objective (down previously from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $262.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their target price on shares of Apple to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $242.52.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.97, for a total transaction of $24,997,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 389,944 shares in the company, valued at $97,474,301.68. This represents a 20.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,130 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.87, for a total value of $945,233.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 15,419 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,528,946.53. The trade was a 21.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.