Griffin Asset Management Inc. Has $43.53 Million Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Griffin Asset Management Inc. decreased its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.5% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 171,529 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 2,697 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for approximately 4.9% of Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $43,532,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $52,266,468,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the first quarter valued at $17,472,482,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 890.7% in the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 41,984,810 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $11,413,990,000 after purchasing an additional 37,746,784 shares during the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Apple by 20,464.8% in the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27,069,029 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $5,553,753,000 after buying an additional 26,937,401 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Apple by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $387,749,545,000 after buying an additional 26,856,752 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ford will integrate Apple Maps and Apple software into upcoming lower-cost EVs and self-driving features, expanding Apple’s automotive footprint and creating another potential platform for its services ecosystem. Ford Will Use Apple Software in New Self-Driving System
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple is preparing a smarter shopping assistant for the App Store and testing a more AI-driven buying experience suggest new ways to improve commerce, engagement, and monetization across its ecosystem. Apple Tests Smarter Shopping Experience
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street sentiment remains constructive in places, with Morgan Stanley reportedly raising its Apple target and several pieces arguing Apple could be an underappreciated AI beneficiary as it readies new Macs, iMacs, and other hardware built for AI demand. Apple Plans To Overhaul Computers to Meet AI Demand
• Neutral Sentiment: Samsung’s new foldables and the broader “AI hardware” race are keeping Apple in the spotlight, but the news is mostly competitive context rather than a direct near-term catalyst.
• Negative Sentiment: Apple lost a key court bid, leaving a $634 million Apple Watch blood-oxygen patent verdict in place, which keeps legal overhangs alive and could raise investor concern about additional costs or product restrictions. Apple Fails to Overturn $634 Million Masimo Verdict
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple market notes point to Apple’s valuation being rich and the stock being vulnerable to volatility into earnings, with some analysts warning that momentum may be peaking after a strong run.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on AAPL. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Apple from $335.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, May 1st. Robert W. Baird set a $310.00 price objective on Apple in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and set a $380.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $326.83.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total value of $369,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,226,770. This trade represents a 3.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL opened at $321.66 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.72 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The business’s 50-day moving average is $305.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $278.63. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $201.50 and a 1 year high of $334.99.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. The firm had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.65 EPS. Apple’s revenue was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. This is an increase from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.06%.

Apple Company Profile

Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) is a multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, founded in 1976 by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. The company designs, develops and sells consumer electronics, software and services. Over its history Apple has evolved from personal computers to a broad portfolio that spans mobile devices, wearables, home entertainment and digital services.

Apple’s principal hardware products include the iPhone smartphone, iPad tablet, Mac personal computers, Apple Watch wearable devices and a range of accessories such as AirPods and HomePod.