Curbstone Financial Management Corp Reduces Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Curbstone Financial Management Corp trimmed its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 69,013 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 54 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 3.7% of Curbstone Financial Management Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Curbstone Financial Management Corp’s holdings in Apple were worth $17,282,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. O Connor Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. O Connor Financial Group LLC now owns 3,578 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $896,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Apple by 0.5% during the third quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 9,654 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,249,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Apple by 1.3% during the third quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,489 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $813,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 12,221 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $2,848,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 3,775 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $945,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL stock opened at $218.27 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $164.08 and a 1-year high of $260.10. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $231.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $233.33. The company has a market capitalization of $3.28 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.65, a PEG 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 posted its quarterly earnings results 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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.46%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AAPL. Argus raised Apple to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays upped their price objective on Apple from $183.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Maxim Group boosted their price target on shares of Apple to $215.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Apple from $275.00 to $252.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $262.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, January 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.