Webster Bank N. A. Lowers Holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Webster Bank N. A. reduced its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 220,541 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 4,038 shares during the period. Apple comprises about 5.9% of Webster Bank N. A.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Webster Bank N. A.’s holdings in Apple were worth $55,228,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Apple by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,540,955 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $385,886,000 after buying an additional 69,698 shares in the last quarter. Two West Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Apple by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Two West Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,036 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,011,000 after acquiring an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC increased its position in Apple by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 240,458 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $60,215,000 after acquiring an additional 7,793 shares in the last quarter. waypoint wealth counsel raised its stake in shares of Apple by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. waypoint wealth counsel now owns 30,877 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $7,732,000 after acquiring an additional 1,370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Apple by 35.6% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 7,251,943 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,816,031,000 after purchasing an additional 1,902,426 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Loop Capital cut shares of Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $230.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Apple from $275.00 to $252.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Apple from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Apple from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $243.65.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $214.10 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $232.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $233.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.22 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $164.08 and a 52 week high of $260.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. 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.