Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stake Raised by West Branch Capital LLC

West Branch Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 154,737 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after buying an additional 1,995 shares during the period. Apple makes up about 12.4% of West Branch Capital LLC's holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. West Branch Capital LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $38,749,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in Apple during the second quarter worth approximately $23,335,000. Point72 Europe London LLP purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 2nd quarter valued at $14,449,000. Blankinship & Foster LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Blankinship & Foster LLC now owns 29,036 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $6,116,000 after acquiring an additional 883 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Apple by 254.9% in the second quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 107,030 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $22,543,000 after purchasing an additional 76,870 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ELCO Management Co. LLC boosted its holdings in Apple by 5.8% in the second quarter. ELCO Management Co. LLC now owns 33,331 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $7,020,000 after purchasing an additional 1,814 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.97, for a total value of $24,997,000.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 389,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $97,474,301.68. The trade was a 20.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed an "underperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $262.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, January 27th. DA Davidson set a $290.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $183.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Apple from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. 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 given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $243.22.

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Apple Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $216.98 on Thursday. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $164.08 and a 12 month high of $260.10. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $235.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $234.00. The company has a market cap of $3.26 trillion, a PE ratio of 34.44, 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 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 15.87%.

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.

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