Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s Largest Position

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. decreased its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 874,565 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 19,428 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises approximately 4.0% of Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $219,008,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. O Connor Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Apple by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. O Connor Financial Group LLC now owns 3,578 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $896,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Apple by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 9,654 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $2,249,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Apple by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,489 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $813,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 12,221 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,848,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Apple by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 3,775 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $945,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 389,944 shares in the company, valued at $97,474,301.68. This represents a 20.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Moffett Nathanson reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $188.00 price objective (down previously from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Apple to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 20th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Apple to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. KeyCorp reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $262.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Four investment 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.88.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $239.07 on Monday. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $164.08 and a fifty-two week high of $260.10. The business has a 50-day moving average of $237.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $234.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.59 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly 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%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.25 dividend. 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 is currently 15.87%.

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.