Evolution Wealth Advisors LLC Purchases 3,998 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Evolution Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 12.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 35,089 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,998 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 1.5% of Evolution Wealth Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. Evolution Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $8,791,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in AAPL. Bull Oak Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 252.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 2nd quarter worth about $42,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 88.9% during the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 306 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the period. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda acquired a new position in Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at about $71,000. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new stake in Apple in the 3rd quarter valued at $77,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AAPL. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their target price on Apple to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. KeyCorp reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Redburn Partners set a $230.00 price objective on Apple in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $243.22.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple 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 directly owns 389,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $97,474,301.68. This trade represents a 20.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $216.98 on Thursday. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $164.08 and a 52-week high of $260.10. The stock has a market cap of $3.26 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.44, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18. The business has a fifty day moving average of $235.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $234.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, beating 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, research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

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.