Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Sold by Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC

Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC reduced its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 69,959 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 657 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up 9.4% of Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $16,300,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Access Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the first quarter valued at $140,000. Hoese & Co LLP grew its position in Apple by 6.7% in the second quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 912 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $175,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. Sage Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Apple in the second quarter valued at $206,000. Finally, Benchmark Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the second quarter valued at $208,000. 60.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL opened at $228.44 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The company has a market cap of $3.45 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.57, a PEG ratio of 2.24 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 firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $227.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $217.47.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The iPhone maker reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.04. Apple had a net margin of 23.97% and a return on equity of 152.94%. The firm had revenue of $94.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.52 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Melius Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $265.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $273.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. New Street Research restated a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Citigroup upped their price target on Apple to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $285.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $235.25.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 61,019 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.20, for a total value of $13,802,497.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 187,043 shares in the company, valued at $42,309,126.60. This represents a 24.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 223,986 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.46, for a total transaction of $50,275,897.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $736,269,202.80. This trade represents a 6.39 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 408,170 shares of company stock worth $92,007,745. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

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.