Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Capital Group Private Client Services Inc.’s 6th Largest Position

Capital Group Private Client Services Inc. lifted its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,178,445 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after buying an additional 26,202 shares during the period. Apple makes up 2.7% of Capital Group Private Client Services Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Capital Group Private Client Services Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $295,106,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,395,785,512 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $349,532,608,000 after acquiring an additional 49,168,843 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 340,164,913 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $84,999,145,000 after purchasing an additional 6,307,413 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,868,648,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Apple by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 98,099,411 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $24,566,054,000 after purchasing an additional 3,156,680 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 59,290,044 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $14,847,413,000 after acquiring an additional 674,991 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $196.45 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.93 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.22. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.21 and a 12-month high of $260.10. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $201.76 and a 200-day moving average of $223.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.03. Apple had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 160.83%. The business had revenue of $95.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.53 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. This is an increase from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.20%.

Apple announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $100.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the iPhone maker to reacquire up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Maxim Group increased their target price on shares of Apple to $215.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated an “underperform” rating and set a $170.62 price target (up previously from $167.88) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $234.86.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other Apple news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 35,493 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.01, for a total value of $7,950,786.93. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 390,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $87,377,116.59. This represents a 8.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 179,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,072,269.86. This represents a 17.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 191,507 shares of company stock worth $42,694,080. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

About Apple

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.