Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Sold by Strategic Planning Group LLC

Strategic Planning Group LLC reduced its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 7.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 130,525 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 10,171 shares during the period. Apple accounts for approximately 4.5% of Strategic Planning Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Strategic Planning Group LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $43,467,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Apple by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 630,662,494 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $182,897,769,000 after acquiring an additional 28,321,085 shares during the period. Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought a new position in shares of Apple in the second quarter worth $65,950,297,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the second quarter valued at $36,986,090,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the second quarter valued at $30,443,242,000. Finally, Amundi grew its position in shares of Apple by 23.2% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 73,082,616 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $18,547,637,000 after purchasing an additional 13,780,080 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 46,389 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.42, for a total value of $15,467,020.38. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,615,190.20. This trade represents a 25.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Timothy D. Cook sold 191,753 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.96, for a total transaction of $63,846,078.88. Following the sale, the insider owned 3,264,168 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,086,837,377.28. The trade was a 5.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 290,212 shares of company stock worth $96,639,685 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Price Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $348.56 on Wednesday. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.42 and a 52-week high of $355.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $337.27 and a 200 day moving average of $299.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.07 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.07.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $114.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $113.40 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 125.35% and a net margin of 27.60%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.85 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 12th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Apple’s payout ratio is presently 12.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAPL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $350.00 price objective (up from $310.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $340.00 target price (up from $296.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, November 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Apple from $360.00 to $355.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Citic Securities increased their price target on shares of Apple from $300.00 to $349.00 in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $370.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $343.74.

Apple News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple has held up better than many Big Tech peers and recently reached record territory, with investors appearing to favor its restrained AI infrastructure spending compared with peers’ heavy investment. That approach may help preserve cash and margins, though it also raises questions about its AI competitiveness. Apple Is Holding Strong While Big Tech Sells Off. Is It Next?
• Positive Sentiment: Apple Intelligence cleared a regulatory step for use on tablets and laptops in China, potentially expanding the service’s reach in a key market. Apple Intelligence registers with Chinese regulator
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple is reportedly holding capital spending steady while rivals accelerate AI infrastructure investment. This could support cash generation, but investors may also question whether the company is investing enough to keep pace in AI. Apple holds capex steady as peers accelerate AI infrastructure buildout
• Negative Sentiment: Binance warned that an iOS vulnerability could allow malicious apps to access data from other apps, potentially exposing crypto-wallet keys and credentials. Uncertainty over affected versions and whether updates resolve the flaw could create security and reputational concerns. Binance warns iOS flaw could expose crypto wallet keys
• Negative Sentiment: Reports of worker deaths at an Indian supplier and an ensuing investigation raise potential supply-chain, operational and reputational risks as Apple expands manufacturing in India. Apple faces major supplier investigation after 3 worker deaths
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation concerns and a reported memory-cost squeeze could pressure expectations. KeyCorp also cut its fiscal 2027 EPS forecast to $8.34 from $9.08 and maintains an Underweight rating with a $250 price target, well below the consensus forecast cited in the report. Apple Is Above $5 Trillion After Its First-Ever Close Above $350

Apple Profile

Apple Inc. designs, manufactures and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its products include the iPhone, Mac computers, iPad, Apple Watch and AirPods, along with operating systems and applications such as iOS, macOS and iPadOS. The company also offers services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, iCloud and Apple Pay. These products and services are integrated across Apple’s devices and are sold to consumers, businesses and institutions around the world. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Cupertino, California, Apple serves customers globally through online and retail stores, wireless carriers and other resellers.