Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc Has $70.74 Million Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc lessened its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 282,484 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 6,331 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for approximately 5.4% of Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings in Apple were worth $70,740,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bull Oak Capital LLC lifted its position in Apple by 252.3% during the third 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 bought a new stake in Apple during the second quarter worth about $42,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda bought a new stake in Apple during the third quarter worth about $71,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 88.9% in the third quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 306 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new position in shares of Apple in the third quarter worth about $77,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.97, for a total value of $24,997,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 389,944 shares in the company, valued at $97,474,301.68. This trade represents a 20.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Apple Price Performance

Apple stock opened at $245.55 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.69 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.98, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.20. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $164.07 and a 52-week high of $260.10. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $240.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $232.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. On average, equities analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Oppenheimer cut shares of Apple from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Apple to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Apple to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $242.52.

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.