Apple Inc. $AAPL Position Lowered by Sage Advisors LLC

Sage Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 40.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,697 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 18,359 shares during the period. Apple accounts for 3.9% of Sage Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Sage Advisors LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $5,477,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

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

Apple Trading Up 2.2%

AAPL opened at $275.25 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $4.07 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.08. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $253.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $225.75. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $277.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.87.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The iPhone maker reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.11. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%.The firm had revenue of $102.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.65 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.64 EPS. Apple’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 43,013 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.39, for a total value of $11,071,116.07. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,181,866.93. This trade represents a 23.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 47,125 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.79, for a total transaction of $12,101,228.75. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 179,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,005,982.82. The trade was a 20.83% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 224,300 shares of company stock valued at $57,586,933. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on AAPL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Wall Street Zen cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and set a $315.00 price objective (up from $245.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Apple from $270.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $278.22.

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.