Clarity Financial LLC Has $35.45 Million Stock Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Clarity Financial LLC lowered its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 141,577 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 4,545 shares during the period. Apple accounts for approximately 4.2% of Clarity Financial LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Clarity Financial LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $35,454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its position in shares of Apple by 21.1% during the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 3,380,064 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $787,631,000 after purchasing an additional 588,427 shares in the last quarter. First PREMIER Bank grew its position in Apple by 1.7% during the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 93,467 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $21,778,000 after buying an additional 1,551 shares in the last quarter. Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. increased its stake in Apple by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 118,888 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $26,356,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares during the period. Great Oak Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Great Oak Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,978 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,129,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tilia Fiduciary Partners Inc. lifted its position in shares of Apple by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Tilia Fiduciary Partners Inc. now owns 32,816 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $7,646,000 after acquiring an additional 1,656 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL stock opened at $221.53 on Thursday. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $164.08 and a 1-year high of $260.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $231.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $233.35. The firm has a market cap of $3.33 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.87%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on AAPL shares. Moffett Nathanson reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $188.00 price target (down previously from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Maxim Group lifted their price objective on shares of Apple to $215.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Apple to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. KeyCorp reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, DA Davidson set a $290.00 price objective on Apple in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four research 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $243.65.

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.