Williams & Novak LLC Purchases Shares of 10,289 Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Williams & Novak LLC acquired a new stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 10,289 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock, valued at approximately $1,981,000. Apple accounts for approximately 2.3% of Williams & Novak LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Conservest Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Apple by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Conservest Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 16,802 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $2,877,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. High Pines Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. High Pines Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,506 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,638,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Asset Planning Corporation lifted its position in Apple by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Asset Planning Corporation now owns 6,135 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,181,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Columbus Macro LLC boosted its holdings in Apple by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 11,224 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,120,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Family CFO Inc grew its position in Apple by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Family CFO Inc now owns 950 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $163,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. 60.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total transaction of $9,244,782.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 136,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,068,376.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 53,194 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.12, for a total transaction of $9,262,139.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 107,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,768,046.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 54,732 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.91, for a total transaction of $9,244,782.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 136,572 shares in the company, valued at $23,068,376.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 366,271 shares of company stock worth $63,653,887. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Apple Price Performance

Apple stock opened at $183.38 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $164.07 and a 52-week high of $199.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $172.17 and its 200 day moving average is $181.60. The company has a market cap of $2.83 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.52, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.26.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $90.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $90.37 billion. Apple had a net margin of 26.31% and a return on equity of 153.25%. The business’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.52 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 6.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, May 2nd that allows the company to buyback $110.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the iPhone maker to repurchase up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AAPL. Bank of America increased their price target on Apple from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday. Citigroup cut their price target on Apple from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $204.00.

Apple Company 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.