Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA Lowers Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA reduced its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 53.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 45,507 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 53,269 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for approximately 4.5% of Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA’s holdings in Apple were worth $9,337,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Salus Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 3.9% in the first quarter. Salus Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,310 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Red Tortoise LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 0.9% in the second quarter. Red Tortoise LLC now owns 5,717 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,173,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. SigFig Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 2.8% in the second quarter. SigFig Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,830 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $368,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Shariaportfolio Inc. lifted its position in shares of Apple by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Shariaportfolio Inc. now owns 3,999 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $820,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sharpepoint LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. Sharpepoint LLC now owns 1,523 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $322,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Down 0.5%

AAPL opened at $268.47 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.97 trillion, a P/E ratio of 40.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.09. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $277.32. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $252.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $224.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The iPhone maker reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.74 by $0.11. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%.The company had revenue of $102.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.65 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.64 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 10th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple’s payout ratio is presently 13.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AAPL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. HSBC set a $220.00 price target on shares of Apple and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. DZ Bank raised shares of Apple from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $270.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their target price on Apple from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $278.22.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 47,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.79, for a total value of $12,101,228.75. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 179,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,005,982.82. This represents a 20.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 43,013 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.39, for a total transaction of $11,071,116.07. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,181,866.93. The trade was a 23.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 224,300 shares of company stock valued at $57,586,933 in the last ninety days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.