Platform Technology Partners Has $32.37 Million Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Platform Technology Partners reduced its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 129,279 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 3,749 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 9.8% of Platform Technology Partners’ portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Platform Technology Partners’ holdings in Apple were worth $32,374,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Amara Financial LLC. purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 3rd quarter worth about $288,000. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 3.8% in the third quarter. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC now owns 69,824 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $16,269,000 after purchasing an additional 2,565 shares during the last quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners boosted its position in shares of Apple by 12.8% during the third quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 253,743 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $59,122,000 after buying an additional 28,799 shares during the period. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 4.2% during the third quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 96,589 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $22,505,000 after buying an additional 3,935 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Narwhal Capital Management boosted its holdings in Apple by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 276,791 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $64,492,000 after acquiring an additional 6,711 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Loop Capital downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $230.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Apple from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Apple from $183.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price objective on Apple to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer cut Apple from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $241.23.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other Apple news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total value of $24,184,616.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,280,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $733,637,976.75. This trade represents a 3.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.67, for a total transaction of $8,683,316.74. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 179,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $40,072,269.86. The trade was a 17.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 182,451 shares of company stock valued at $40,818,720. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $172.42 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $164.08 and a 12-month high of $260.10. The business’s 50 day moving average is $225.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $232.01. The company has a market capitalization of $2.59 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.26.

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

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.87%.

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.