Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stock Position Boosted by Princeton Global Asset Management LLC

Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 58,784 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after buying an additional 624 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 2.8% of Princeton Global Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $14,721,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC grew its position in Apple by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC now owns 64,015 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $14,916,000 after purchasing an additional 1,066 shares during the last quarter. Amara Financial LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at $288,000. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC raised its stake in Apple by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC now owns 69,824 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $16,269,000 after acquiring an additional 2,565 shares during the last quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners lifted its position in Apple by 12.8% during the 3rd quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 253,743 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $59,122,000 after acquiring an additional 28,799 shares during the period. Finally, Catalyst Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in Apple by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 96,589 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $22,505,000 after purchasing an additional 3,935 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on AAPL shares. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Apple from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of Apple to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 20th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Moffett Nathanson reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $188.00 price target (down from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $245.52.

Apple Stock Up 1.9 %

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $222.13 on Tuesday. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $164.08 and a one year high of $260.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.92. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $230.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $233.42. The company has a market cap of $3.34 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.87%.

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.