Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Vantage Investment Partners LLC’s 9th Largest Position

Vantage Investment Partners LLC lowered its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 165,315 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 6,550 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 3.6% of Vantage Investment Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Vantage Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $41,398,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Bull Oak Capital LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 252.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 3rd quarter worth about $71,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc grew its position in shares of Apple by 88.9% in the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 306 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the period. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the 3rd quarter worth about $77,000. Finally, ARK Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Apple during the 3rd quarter valued at about $110,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $218.27 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.28 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $164.08 and a fifty-two week high of $260.10. 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 business’s 50-day moving average is $231.82 and its 200-day moving average is $233.26.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. Equities research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAPL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Maxim Group raised their price target on shares of Apple to $215.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Moffett Nathanson restated a “sell” rating and issued a $188.00 price target (down from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Argus upgraded Apple to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Apple from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $243.65.

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.