Renaissance Investment Group LLC Increases Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Renaissance Investment Group LLC grew its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 85,198 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 4.5% of Renaissance Investment Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Renaissance Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $21,335,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bull Oak Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 252.3% in the third 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 acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the second quarter worth approximately $42,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc increased 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 valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda bought a new position in Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at $71,000. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the third quarter worth $77,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was 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 owns 389,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $97,474,301.68. This trade represents a 20.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $235.33 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.54 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.35, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The company’s 50-day moving average is $237.89 and its 200-day moving average is $233.94. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $164.08 and a fifty-two week high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.42%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on AAPL shares. Maxim Group boosted their price objective on Apple to $215.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $262.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Oppenheimer cut Apple from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Citigroup raised their target price on Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $325.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.