Wick Capital Partners LLC Sells 250 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Wick Capital Partners LLC reduced its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 3.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,148 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 250 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 1.4% of Wick Capital Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Wick Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $1,397,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc bought a new position in Apple in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 17.9% in the first quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 206,455 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 31,278 shares during the last quarter. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC boosted its position 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 buying an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. grew its holdings in Apple by 657.1% during the fourth quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Up 0.6 %

AAPL opened at $226.05 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $3.47 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.24. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $164.07 and a 12 month high of $237.23. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $218.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $193.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The iPhone maker reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $85.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.43 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 145.35% and a net margin of 26.44%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.26 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 6.61 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 15.55%.

Apple announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, May 2nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $110.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the iPhone maker to buy up to 3.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Itau BBA Securities upgraded Apple from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $162.00 to $188.00 in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. DA Davidson upgraded shares of Apple from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $200.00 to $230.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Apple from $187.00 to $186.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, July 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Apple from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $234.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director now owns 4,359,576 shares in the company, valued at $835,207,570.08. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.58, for a total value of $14,368,500.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,359,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $835,207,570.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Chris Kondo sold 5,178 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.50, for a total value of $1,121,037.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 24,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,223,062.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 180,178 shares of company stock valued at $36,133,537 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

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.