Bristlecone Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 4.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 71,303 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 3,059 shares during the period. Apple comprises 3.6% of Bristlecone Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Bristlecone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $10,244,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Saratoga Research & Investment Management raised its stake in Apple by 0.6% in the first quarter. Saratoga Research & Investment Management now owns 667,132 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $95,840,000 after buying an additional 4,137 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bank acquired a new stake in Apple during the first quarter worth $1,924,000. Green Square Capital LLC raised its stake in Apple by 6.7% in the first quarter. Green Square Capital LLC now owns 87,456 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $12,564,000 after buying an additional 5,491 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth $5,625,709,000. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Apple by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 147,469 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $20,613,000 after buying an additional 8,233 shares during the last quarter. 61.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) traded down 1.1992% on Thursday, reaching $159.0198. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 8,481,170 shares. The company has a market capitalization of $821.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.0540 and a beta of 1.31. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $151.25 and a 200 day moving average of $145.28. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $102.53 and a 12-month high of $162.51.
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $45.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $44.94 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 35.40% and a net margin of 20.87%. The business’s revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.42 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post $9.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 17th. Investors of record on Monday, August 14th will be given a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 10th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.57%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.64%.
Apple announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, May 2nd that authorizes the company to buyback $50.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to purchase up to 6.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.
TRADEMARK VIOLATION NOTICE: “Bristlecone Advisors LLC Decreases Position in Apple Inc. (AAPL)” was published by StockNewsTimes and is the property of of StockNewsTimes. If you are viewing this article on another site, it was illegally copied and reposted in violation of international trademark and copyright law. The legal version of this article can be accessed at https://stocknewstimes.com/2017/08/17/bristlecone-advisors-llc-decreases-position-in-apple-inc-aapl.html.
AAPL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $157.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $177.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 17th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 target price (up from $165.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Rosenblatt Securities set a $120.00 target price on shares of Apple and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 3rd. Finally, Bank of America Corporation reissued a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price (up from $175.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, forty-two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Apple currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $167.33.
In related news, insider Luca Maestri sold 4,757 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.70, for a total value of $735,907.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $528,145.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Eduardo H. Cue sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.78, for a total value of $6,920,100.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 287,962 shares of company stock valued at $44,702,313. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.
Apple Company Profile
Apple Inc (Apple) designs, manufactures and markets mobile communication and media devices, personal computers, and portable digital music players, and a variety of related software, services, peripherals, networking solutions, and third-party digital content and applications. The Company’s products and services include iPhone, iPad, Mac, iPod, Apple TV, a portfolio of consumer and professional software applications, the iOS and OS X operating systems, iCloud, and a variety of accessory, service and support offerings.
Receive News & Ratings for Apple Inc. Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Apple Inc. and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
