Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stock Holdings Reduced by Access Financial Services Inc.

Access Financial Services Inc. lowered its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,450 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 120 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up approximately 1.1% of Access Financial Services Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Access Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $2,366,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bull Oak Capital LLC raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda acquired a new position in Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America acquired a new position in Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $77,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Raymond James upped their price target on Apple to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley set a $275.00 target price on Apple in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Apple to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Four investment 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 given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.88.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL opened at $239.07 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $237.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $234.03. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $164.08 and a 1 year high of $260.10. The company has a market capitalization of $3.59 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly 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 return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. Equities analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

About Apple

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.