HF Advisory Group LLC Buys 1,098 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

HF Advisory Group LLC boosted its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 10.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,966 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,098 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 1.4% of HF Advisory Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. HF Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $2,997,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 105,272 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $26,362,000 after acquiring an additional 7,501 shares in the last quarter. Whitaker Myers Wealth Managers LTD. increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 14.7% in the fourth quarter. Whitaker Myers Wealth Managers LTD. now owns 18,230 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $4,565,000 after acquiring an additional 2,330 shares in the last quarter. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC now owns 60,034 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $15,034,000 after acquiring an additional 6,442 shares in the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 81,062 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $20,299,000 after acquiring an additional 8,678 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Monarch Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Monarch Capital Management Inc. now owns 65,849 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $16,490,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.97, for a total transaction of $24,997,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 389,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $97,474,301.68. This trade represents a 20.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $235.74 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $3.54 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $164.08 and a 1-year high of $260.10. The business’s 50 day moving average is $238.36 and its 200-day moving average is $233.93.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple had a return on equity of 160.83% and a net margin of 24.30%. Equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.42%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.87%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Moffett Nathanson reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $188.00 price objective (down from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Apple from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on Apple from $253.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $243.88.

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.