Westpac Banking Corp Sells 13,009 Shares of Apollo Global Management Inc. (NYSE:APO)

Westpac Banking Corp lowered its stake in shares of Apollo Global Management Inc. (NYSE:APO) by 85.5% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,210 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 13,009 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Apollo Global Management were worth $303,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in APO. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new position in Apollo Global Management during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC grew its position in Apollo Global Management by 84.5% during the first quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC grew its position in Apollo Global Management by 285.0% during the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 231 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. bought a new position in Apollo Global Management during the first quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Apollo Global Management by 118.6% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 317 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 172 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apollo Global Management news, insider Whitney Chatterjee sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.03, for a total transaction of $657,135.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 83,192 shares in the company, valued at $12,148,527.76. This trade represents a 5.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 8.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Apollo Global Management Trading Down 2.6%

Shares of APO opened at $140.83 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $142.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $141.02. The company has a market capitalization of $80.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.27. Apollo Global Management Inc. has a 1-year low of $102.58 and a 1-year high of $189.49.

Apollo Global Management (NYSE:APO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $6,550,000 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. Apollo Global Management had a net margin of 13.25% and a return on equity of 13.38%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.64 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Apollo Global Management Inc. will post 8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apollo Global Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. Apollo Global Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.13%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Apollo Global Management from $156.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Apollo Global Management from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Apollo Global Management from $160.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Apollo Global Management in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Apollo Global Management from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $161.26.

Apollo Global Management Company Profile

Apollo Global Management, Inc is a private equity firm specializing in investments in credit, private equity, infrastructure, secondaries and real estate markets. The firm prefers to invest in private and public markets. The firm’s private equity investments include traditional buyouts, recapitalization, distressed buyouts and debt investments in real estate, corporate partner buyouts, distressed asset, corporate carve-outs, middle market, growth, venture capital, turnaround, bridge, corporate restructuring, special situation, acquisition, and industry consolidation transactions.