Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Sold by Sowa Financial Group Inc.

Sowa Financial Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 104,845 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 6,233 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises approximately 13.4% of Sowa Financial Group Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Sowa Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $21,511,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AAPL. Financial Symmetry Inc grew its position in Apple by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Financial Symmetry Inc now owns 12,109 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,484,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Capital Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the second quarter valued at about $444,000. Orin Green Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 1.9% in the second quarter. Orin Green Financial LLC now owns 13,214 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,711,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Alaska Wealth Advisors raised its stake in shares of Apple by 43.5% in the second quarter. Alaska Wealth Advisors now owns 11,548 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,369,000 after purchasing an additional 3,499 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sentry Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 10.3% during the second quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 48,294 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $10,142,000 after purchasing an additional 4,509 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Trading Down 0.0%

AAPL stock opened at $267.44 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $257.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $227.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $169.21 and a 52-week high of $277.32. The firm has a market cap of $3.95 trillion, a P/E ratio of 40.58, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.09.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The iPhone maker reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.74 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $102.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.65 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%.Apple’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.64 EPS. As a group, equities 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, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 10th were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 10th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.92%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 43,013 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.39, for a total value of $11,071,116.07. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at $35,181,866.93. This trade represents a 23.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 47,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.79, for a total transaction of $12,101,228.75. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 179,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,005,982.82. This trade represents a 20.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 228,052 shares of company stock worth $58,604,588 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Apple from $180.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Tigress Financial boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $300.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price target on Apple from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Apple from $279.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $278.22.

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.