Bfsg LLC Reduces Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Bfsg LLC trimmed its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 93,197 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 2,493 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for about 2.7% of Bfsg LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Bfsg LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $23,338,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Amara Financial LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at $288,000. Silicon Valley Capital Partners lifted its stake in Apple by 12.8% during the third quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 253,743 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $59,122,000 after buying an additional 28,799 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 4.2% during the third quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 96,589 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $22,505,000 after buying an additional 3,935 shares in the last quarter. Vestcor Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 10.1% in the third quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 375,539 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $87,501,000 after buying an additional 34,414 shares during the period. Finally, 5th Street Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 32.9% during the third quarter. 5th Street Advisors LLC now owns 15,100 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,518,000 after acquiring an additional 3,736 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Apple news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total transaction of $24,184,616.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,295 shares in the company, valued at $733,637,976.75. The trade was a 3.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.67, for a total transaction 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 approximately $40,072,269.86. This represents a 17.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 182,451 shares of company stock worth $40,818,720. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AAPL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Apple from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. DA Davidson decreased their target price on Apple from $290.00 to $230.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Moffett Nathanson reiterated a "sell" rating and set a $188.00 price target (down previously from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wedbush reduced their price objective on Apple from $325.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $233.88.

Apple Price Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $208.37 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market cap of $3.13 trillion, a P/E ratio of 33.07, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $216.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $229.42. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $168.15 and a one year high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Apple's payout ratio is presently 15.87%.

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.

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