Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 46,433 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 20.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 179,231 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 46,433 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 2.1% of Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $44,883,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bull Oak Capital LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 252.3% during 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. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in Apple during the second quarter valued at about $42,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc grew its position in Apple by 88.9% during the third quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 306 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the period. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda bought a new position in Apple during the third quarter valued at about $71,000. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new position in Apple during the third quarter worth about $77,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling 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 shares were sold at an average price of $249.97, for a total value of $24,997,000.00. Following the transaction, 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 at this link. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Up 1.9 %

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $241.76 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $239.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $233.58. The company has a market capitalization of $3.63 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.20. 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 Inc. has a 1-year low of $164.07 and a 1-year high of $260.10.

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

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on AAPL shares. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Apple from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Moffett Nathanson reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $188.00 price objective (down previously from $202.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Maxim Group boosted their price objective on shares of Apple to $215.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Apple from $253.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, DA Davidson set a $290.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four research 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.