Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Kennedy Investment Group’s 2nd Largest Position

Kennedy Investment Group boosted its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 66,499 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 935 shares during the period. Apple comprises 7.2% of Kennedy Investment Group’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Kennedy Investment Group’s holdings in Apple were worth $12,803,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AAPL. Morgan Stanley increased its position in Apple by 1.0% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 206,732,960 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $35,394,751,000 after purchasing an additional 2,018,010 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 14,395.4% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 70,700,395 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $136,119,470,000 after acquiring an additional 70,212,651 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 49,759,061 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $8,519,244,000 after purchasing an additional 2,826,709 shares in the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its stake in Apple by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 38,579,495 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $6,605,195,000 after acquiring an additional 1,696,576 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Apple by 1.7% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 17,519,918 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $3,020,609,000 after purchasing an additional 287,329 shares in the last quarter. 60.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 99,183 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.03, for a total transaction of $16,864,085.49. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,377,407 shares in the company, valued at $574,260,512.21. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 53,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.12, for a total transaction of $9,262,139.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 107,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,768,046.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 99,183 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.03, for a total transaction of $16,864,085.49. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,377,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $574,260,512.21. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 366,271 shares of company stock valued at $63,653,887. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $182.74 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $172.17 and its 200-day moving average is $181.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $164.07 and a 12 month high of $199.62. The firm has a market cap of $2.82 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.26.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $90.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.37 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 148.33% and a net margin of 26.31%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.52 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 6.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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 purchase up to 3.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 16th. Investors of record on Monday, May 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on AAPL shares. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 4th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price target on Apple from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Redburn Partners lowered Apple to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Redburn Atlantic downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $204.11.

Apple Company 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.