Corundum Group Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Corundum Group Inc. cut its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 5.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,642 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 2,043 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 2.7% of Corundum Group Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Corundum Group Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $5,597,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Wyrmwood Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 69.0% during the fourth quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 118.0% during the fourth quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. grew its position in Apple by 657.1% during the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter valued at about $85,000. 60.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Apple Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of Apple stock opened at $221.55 on Thursday. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $164.07 and a fifty-two week high of $221.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company has a market capitalization of $3.40 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a fifty day moving average of $194.21 and a 200 day moving average of $185.60.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.02. Apple had a return on equity of 148.33% and a net margin of 26.31%. The firm had revenue of $90.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $90.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.52 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.45%. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.55%.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 2nd that permits the company to buyback $110.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the iPhone maker to purchase up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. DZ Bank reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, March 28th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday. Rosenblatt Securities upgraded Apple from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $196.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. Melius Research increased their price objective on Apple from $227.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Maxim Group lifted their price objective on Apple from $178.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.71.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.58, for a total transaction of $14,368,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,359,576 shares in the company, valued at $835,207,570.08. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Apple news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.58, for a total value of $14,368,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,359,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $835,207,570.08. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 59,162 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.22, for a total transaction of $10,188,879.64. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 489,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $84,378,155.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 192,355 shares of company stock valued at $34,771,329. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.