Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stake Boosted by Stableford Capital II LLC

Stableford Capital II LLC increased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 17,106 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 868 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises approximately 1.7% of Stableford Capital II LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Stableford Capital II LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $4,284,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Drystone LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Bull Oak Capital LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 252.3% during the third quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda acquired a new stake in Apple in the third quarter worth approximately $71,000. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new position in Apple during the 3rd quarter valued at $77,000. Finally, ARK Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 3rd quarter valued at $110,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and set a $262.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their target price on shares of Apple to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $245.52.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $217.90 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $164.08 and a one year high of $260.10. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $230.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $233.35. 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 company has a market capitalization of $3.27 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18.

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%. Analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

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.