Swmg LLC Grows Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Swmg LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 401.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,280 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,827 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 0.7% of Swmg LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Swmg LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $1,639,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bull Oak Capital LLC raised its stake in Apple by 252.3% during the third quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in Apple during the second quarter valued at $42,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc increased its position in Apple by 88.9% during the third quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 306 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new position in Apple during the third quarter valued at $77,000. Finally, ARK Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Apple during the third quarter valued at $110,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Apple

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

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL stock opened at $227.63 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $3.42 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.13, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.20. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $241.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $231.04. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $164.07 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.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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, equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital cut shares of Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Maxim Group boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $203.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $253.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Apple from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $242.52.

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.