Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. Lowers Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. cut its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 320,756 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 1,988 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 3.1% of Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $74,736,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Bull Oak Capital LLC raised its position in Apple by 252.3% in the third quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the period. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc raised its holdings in Apple by 88.9% in the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 306 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the period. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America purchased a new position in Apple during the third quarter valued at $77,000. Finally, ARK Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Apple during the third quarter valued at about $110,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.97, for a total value of $24,997,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 389,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $97,474,301.68. This represents a 20.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,130 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.87, for a total transaction of $945,233.10. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 15,419 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,528,946.53. The trade was a 21.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Apple Stock Down 2.4 %

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $227.63 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $164.07 and a 52 week high of $260.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.42 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.13, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a fifty day moving average of $241.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $230.97.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. Apple’s payout ratio is 15.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on AAPL. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $236.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price objective on shares of Apple to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $242.52.

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.