Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV Trims Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV lessened its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 101,150 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 1,495 shares during the period. Apple makes up 4.0% of Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV’s holdings in Apple were worth $21,304,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Access Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $140,000. Hoese & Co LLP increased its position in shares of Apple by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 912 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $175,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Benchmark Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $208,000. Sequent Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $214,000. Finally, Financial Life Advisors bought a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $212,000. Institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on AAPL. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $186.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “overweight” rating and set a $265.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Maxim Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $203.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer restated a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $239.27.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL opened at $231.78 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $225.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $207.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market cap of $3.55 trillion, a PE ratio of 36.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.24. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $164.07 and a 1 year high of $237.49.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.06. Apple had a return on equity of 147.15% and a net margin of 26.44%. The company had revenue of $85.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $84.43 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.26 EPS. Apple’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 6.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.43%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 223,986 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.46, for a total transaction of $50,275,897.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $736,269,202.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 59,305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.52, for a total value of $13,433,768.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 107,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,416,137.76. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 223,986 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.46, for a total value of $50,275,897.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,180 shares in the company, valued at $736,269,202.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 517,924 shares of company stock worth $114,786,399 in the last three months. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.