Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Shares Acquired by Congress Asset Management Co.

Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,444,519 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 6,595 shares during the period. Apple makes up 2.4% of Congress Asset Management Co.'s holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. Congress Asset Management Co.'s holdings in Apple were worth $361,737,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. Drystone LLC acquired a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Bull Oak Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 252.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $47,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at $71,000. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at $77,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL traded up $1.05 on Thursday, hitting $205.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,306,687 shares, compared to its average volume of 56,633,127. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $217.14 and a 200-day moving average of $229.52. The company has a market capitalization of $3.09 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.26. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $166.21 and a 12-month high of $260.10. 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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. As a group, research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Apple's payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on AAPL shares. Argus upgraded shares of Apple to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush lowered their target price on shares of Apple from $325.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Apple from $183.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Rosenblatt Securities restated a "buy" rating and issued a $263.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Apple from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $233.88.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other Apple news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total value of $24,184,616.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $733,637,976.75. The trade was a 3.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.67, for a total value of $8,683,316.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 179,158 shares of the company's stock, valued at $40,072,269.86. This trade represents a 17.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 182,451 shares of company stock valued at $40,818,720. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.