DnB Asset Management AS Grows Position in Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO)

DnB Asset Management AS boosted its stake in shares of Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) by 28.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 208,439 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 45,659 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Apollo Global Management were worth $34,426,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Apollo Global Management by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,135,384 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,454,560,000 after purchasing an additional 3,691,700 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Apollo Global Management by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,717,266 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $713,230,000 after buying an additional 254,268 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Apollo Global Management by 60.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,900,562 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $479,057,000 after buying an additional 1,094,464 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Apollo Global Management by 42.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,640,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $436,148,000 after acquiring an additional 782,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Apollo Global Management by 13.6% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,473,237 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $408,480,000 after acquiring an additional 296,951 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APO has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Apollo Global Management from $178.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Apollo Global Management from $157.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Apollo Global Management from $174.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Apollo Global Management from $169.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Apollo Global Management from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $165.21.

Apollo Global Management Stock Down 3.6 %

Shares of NYSE APO opened at $136.89 on Friday. Apollo Global Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $95.11 and a 52-week high of $189.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.73, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $152.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $152.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.44.

Apollo Global Management Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Apollo Global Management’s payout ratio is 25.31%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Leon D. Black sold 500,000 shares of Apollo Global Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.00, for a total value of $71,000,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,604,773 shares in the company, valued at $4,913,877,766. This trade represents a 1.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Martin Kelly sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.28, for a total transaction of $791,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 377,164 shares in the company, valued at $59,697,517.92. The trade was a 1.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 8.50% of the company’s stock.

Apollo Global Management 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.