Candriam S.C.A. Cuts Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Candriam S.C.A. decreased its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,555,963 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 218,768 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises 4.6% of Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Apple were worth $748,922,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 17.9% during the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 31,278 shares in the last quarter. Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the first quarter valued at approximately $140,000. Hoese & Co LLP grew its holdings in Apple by 6.7% during the second quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 912 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $175,000 after buying an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Sage Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at $206,000. Finally, Benchmark Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Apple during the 2nd quarter valued at $208,000. 60.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Apple from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Monness Crespi & Hardt reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Moffett Nathanson initiated coverage on Apple in a research note on Monday, August 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $211.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $236.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Melius Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $265.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $239.27.

Apple Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $236.48 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.63 trillion, a PE ratio of 36.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.24. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $164.07 and a 52-week high of $237.49. The business’s fifty day moving average is $226.16 and its 200 day moving average is $208.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.95.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $85.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $84.43 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 147.15% and a net margin of 26.44%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.26 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 6.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.42%. Apple’s payout ratio is presently 15.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total transaction of $20,644,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Chris Kondo sold 5,178 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.50, for a total value of $1,121,037.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 24,125 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,223,062.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total value of $20,644,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. This 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 over the last three months. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Apple 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.