Vantage Investment Partners LLC Sells 6,550 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Vantage Investment Partners LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 3.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 165,315 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 6,550 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 3.6% of Vantage Investment Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Vantage Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $41,398,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in Apple by 1.7% in the third quarter. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC now owns 64,015 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $14,916,000 after acquiring an additional 1,066 shares during the last quarter. Amara Financial LLC. acquired a new position in Apple in the third quarter valued at $288,000. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC boosted its holdings in Apple by 3.8% in the third quarter. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC now owns 69,824 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $16,269,000 after acquiring an additional 2,565 shares during the last quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners boosted its holdings in Apple by 12.8% in the third quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 253,743 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $59,122,000 after acquiring an additional 28,799 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Financial Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Apple by 4.2% in the third quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 96,589 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $22,505,000 after acquiring an additional 3,935 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $218.27 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $231.82 and a 200-day moving average of $233.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.28 trillion, a PE ratio of 34.65, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $164.08 and a 12 month high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced 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 net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 160.83%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.87%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AAPL. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Redburn Partners set a $230.00 price objective on Apple in a research note on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp restated an “underweight” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Moffett Nathanson restated a “sell” rating and set a $188.00 price objective (down previously from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $243.65.

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.