Verus Financial Partners Inc. Cuts Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Verus Financial Partners Inc. cut its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 8.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,599 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 1,348 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 0.4% of Verus Financial Partners Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Verus Financial Partners Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $3,695,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Drystone LLC acquired a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Bull Oak Capital LLC increased its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc increased its position in shares of Apple by 88.9% in the third 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. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda acquired a new position in Apple in the third quarter valued at about $71,000. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new stake in Apple during the third quarter worth about $77,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of AAPL stock traded up $1.06 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $223.19. The company had a trading volume of 36,364,336 shares, compared to its average volume of 54,855,021. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $230.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $233.43. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $164.08 and a 12 month high of $260.10. The company has a market cap of $3.35 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. On average, research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. Apple's payout ratio is presently 15.87%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on AAPL shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $183.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson set a $290.00 target price on Apple in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer cut Apple from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Apple from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $245.52.

Apple Company 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.