Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Stock Position Lessened by Means Investment CO. Inc.

Means Investment CO. Inc. cut its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 366,044 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 4,509 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 9.5% of Means Investment CO. Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Means Investment CO. Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $91,665,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. O Connor Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. O Connor Financial Group LLC now owns 3,578 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $896,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Apple by 0.5% in the third quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 9,654 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,249,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Apple by 1.3% in the third quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,489 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $813,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Menard Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Apple by 0.4% during the third quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 12,221 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $2,848,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 3,775 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $945,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on AAPL. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Apple to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 20th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their target price on Apple to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays upped their target price on Apple from $183.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $325.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated an “underperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $245.52.

Apple Stock Up 1.9 %

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $222.13 on Tuesday. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $164.08 and a 12 month high of $260.10. The company has a market capitalization of $3.34 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.26, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $230.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $233.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share (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 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is 15.87%.

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.