Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Trading Down 8.7% on Insider Selling

Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) were down 8.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $202.52 and last traded at $204.34. Approximately 39,048,828 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 29% from the average daily volume of 54,755,872 shares. The stock had previously closed at $223.89.

Specifically, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 38,822 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.67, for a total transaction of $8,683,316.74. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 179,158 shares in the company, valued at $40,072,269.86. This trade represents a 17.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 108,136 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.65, for a total transaction of $24,184,616.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,280,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $733,637,976.75. This represents a 3.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 35,493 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.01, for a total transaction of $7,950,786.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 390,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $87,377,116.59. The trade was a 8.34 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $230.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Tigress Financial increased their target price on shares of Apple from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Apple from $275.00 to $252.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Raymond James boosted their price objective on Apple to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $245.26.

Apple Trading Down 7.3 %

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 market capitalization of $2.83 trillion, a P/E ratio of 29.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.18. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $229.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $232.96.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 160.83%. On average, research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Apple’s payout ratio is 15.87%.

Institutional Trading of Apple

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Drystone LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Bull Oak Capital LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 252.3% in the third quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

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.