Gulf International Bank UK Ltd Reduces Position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd trimmed its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 10.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,300,707 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 146,206 shares during the period. Apple makes up 7.1% of Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s holdings in Apple were worth $250,425,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the first quarter worth $30,000. Wyrmwood Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 69.0% during the 4th quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Summit Wealth Group LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 16,252.3% during the first quarter. Summit Wealth Group LLC now owns 6,992,420 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 6,949,659 shares during the last quarter. HBC Financial Services PLLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 21.7% during the first quarter. HBC Financial Services PLLC now owns 448 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, West Tower Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the second quarter valued at about $64,000. 60.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Apple Stock Up 2.1 %

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $173.31 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $2.68 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.29. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $155.98 and a 52-week high of $199.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $181.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $182.73.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The iPhone maker reported $2.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $119.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $117.99 billion. Apple had a net margin of 26.16% and a return on equity of 156.04%. The company’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.88 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 6.55 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 12th were paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 9th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Apple from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Apple from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Redburn Atlantic cut shares of Apple from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $189.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.27.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total value of $18,094,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,434,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $802,392,181.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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.