Bowman & Co S.C. Lowers Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Bowman & Co S.C. lessened its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,837 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 261 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up approximately 3.7% of Bowman & Co S.C.’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Bowman & Co S.C.’s holdings in Apple were worth $7,221,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Bull Oak Capital LLC grew its stake in Apple by 252.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda purchased a new position in Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc grew its stake in Apple by 88.9% in the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 306 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America purchased a new position in Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $77,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

Apple stock opened at $235.74 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a market capitalization of $3.54 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.20. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $238.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $233.93. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $164.08 and a twelve month high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 160.83%. Research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.42%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 389,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $97,474,301.68. This represents a 20.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $262.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price objective on shares of Apple to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley set a $275.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Apple from $183.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.88.

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.