Capital International Inc. CA Increases Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Capital International Inc. CA increased its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 16.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 493,476 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 71,299 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 1.1% of Capital International Inc. CA’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Capital International Inc. CA’s holdings in Apple were worth $84,621,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc purchased a new position in Apple in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Apple by 17.9% in the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 31,278 shares during the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. purchased a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC boosted its position in Apple by 118.0% in the 4th quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. boosted its position in Apple by 657.1% in the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $82,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. 60.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL opened at $226.05 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $218.52 and its 200-day moving average is $193.03. The stock has a market cap of $3.47 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $164.07 and a twelve month high of $237.23.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.06. Apple had a return on equity of 145.35% and a net margin of 26.44%. The company had revenue of $85.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.26 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 6.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.55%.

Apple declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 2nd that allows the company to repurchase $110.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the iPhone maker to reacquire up to 3.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on AAPL. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, July 1st. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 4th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Apple from $210.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Apple from $187.00 to $186.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler Companies restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $225.00 target price (up previously from $190.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, twenty-five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $234.29.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total transaction of $20,644,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at $39,542,136.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Chris Kondo sold 5,178 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.50, for a total transaction of $1,121,037.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 24,125 shares in the company, valued at $5,223,062.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.44, for a total transaction of $20,644,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 191,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,542,136.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 180,178 shares of company stock worth $36,133,537 over the last quarter. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.