iA Global Asset Management Inc. Trims Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

iA Global Asset Management Inc. lowered its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 15.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,322,856 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 243,303 shares during the period. Apple accounts for approximately 5.4% of iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $308,225,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Heritage Family Offices LLP bought a new position in shares of Apple in the 2nd quarter worth about $3,331,000. Fortress Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in Apple by 2.1% during the second quarter. Fortress Wealth Group LLC now owns 19,812 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $4,458,000 after acquiring an additional 413 shares during the period. Semus Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 0.7% in the second quarter. Semus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 136,338 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $28,716,000 after acquiring an additional 974 shares during the last quarter. Golden Road Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Apple by 4.8% in the second quarter. Golden Road Advisors LLC now owns 8,334 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,906,000 after acquiring an additional 385 shares during the period. Finally, Cook Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 136.4% during the second quarter. Cook Wealth LLC now owns 18,496 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $4,023,000 after purchasing an additional 10,672 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of AAPL opened at $227.65 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $241.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $231.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.42 trillion, a P/E ratio of 36.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.20. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $164.07 and a 1-year high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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 dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is 15.87%.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.97, for a total transaction of $24,997,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 389,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $97,474,301.68. The trade was a 20.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 4,130 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.87, for a total value of $945,233.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly 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 insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Apple from $273.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Apple from $183.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Maxim Group lifted 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. Moffett Nathanson restated a “sell” rating and issued a $188.00 target price (down previously from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on Apple to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average 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.