Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC Lowers Stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC reduced its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 9.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,856 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 2,490 shares during the period. Apple makes up 1.3% of Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $5,974,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Drystone LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Bull Oak Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 252.3% during the third quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new position in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at $47,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda bought a new position in Apple in the third quarter valued at about $71,000. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new position in Apple in the third quarter valued at about $77,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL traded up $1.05 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $205.65. 8,306,687 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 56,633,127. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $217.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $229.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.09 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.69, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.92. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $166.21 and a twelve month high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share (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%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is presently 15.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.67, for a total value of $8,683,316.74. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 179,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,072,269.86. This represents a 17.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 182,451 shares of company stock valued at $40,818,720 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on AAPL shares. China Renaissance started coverage on Apple in a report on Tuesday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $241.00 target price on the stock. Redburn Partners set a $230.00 target price on Apple in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Apple from $270.00 to $245.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Moffett Nathanson restated a "sell" rating and issued a $188.00 price target (down previously from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price target on Apple to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $233.88.

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.