New Perspectives Inc Acquires Shares of 12,500 Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

New Perspectives Inc acquired a new stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 12,500 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock, valued at approximately $2,143,000. Apple accounts for approximately 1.2% of New Perspectives Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wyrmwood Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 69.0% during the 4th quarter. Wyrmwood Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. Gilfoyle & Co LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 118.0% during the 4th quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC now owns 218 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. grew its stake in shares of Apple by 657.1% during the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. now owns 424 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 368 shares during the period. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth $85,000. Institutional investors own 60.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AAPL. Redburn Atlantic downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Apple from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Maxim Group initiated coverage on Apple in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $178.00 target price for the company. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Apple from $186.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Apple from $215.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $203.05.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 59,162 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.22, for a total transaction of $10,188,879.64. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 489,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $84,378,155.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 59,162 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.22, for a total transaction of $10,188,879.64. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 489,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $84,378,155.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Arthur D. Levinson sold 100,000 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.94, for a total value of $18,094,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,434,576 shares in the company, valued at $802,392,181.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 366,271 shares of company stock worth $63,653,887 in the last ninety days. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL traded down $0.59 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $169.30. 44,717,137 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 53,363,952. The company has a market capitalization of $2.61 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $164.07 and a 52-week high of $199.62. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $173.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $181.83.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The iPhone maker reported $2.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.09. Apple had a return on equity of 156.04% and a net margin of 26.16%. The company had revenue of $119.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $117.99 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.88 EPS. Apple’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 6.54 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Investors of record on Monday, February 12th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 9th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. Apple’s payout ratio is 14.95%.

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.