Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Sold by Profit Investment Management LLC

Profit Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 34.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,014 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 2,686 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 1.6% of Profit Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Profit Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $1,277,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ryan Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Apple during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC increased its stake in Apple by 1,800.0% during the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. Nexus Investment Management ULC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 333.3% during the second quarter. Nexus Investment Management ULC now owns 260 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $65,000. Finally, Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 41.0% in the second quarter. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC now owns 430 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other 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: Analysts and investors are pricing in a faster growth profile for Apple next year — a widely circulated take is that Apple is likely to return to double‑digit revenue growth in fiscal 2026, driven by iPhone strength and Services, supporting the bull case for multiple and earnings upgrades. Apple Is Likely to Return to Double-Digit Revenue Growth in Fiscal 2026 — and the Stock Looks Like a Buy
• Positive Sentiment: MarketBeat highlights Apple as an “AI outlier” — a late but powerful entrant — noting steady analyst upgrades and price‑target raises, plus iPhone/service momentum that could sustain upside as AI features are rolled into consumer products. 5 Stocks Set to Start Strong in January and Lead Through 2026 (AAPL)
• Positive Sentiment: CNBC coverage of the Mag‑7 split frames a market that rewards companies that can monetize AI rather than simply spending heavily on capex — a setup that investors say favors distribution‑first players like Apple that can drive software/services revenue from a huge installed base. AI spend is forcing a Mag 7 reckoning — and the gap could widen in 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Longer‑term AI theme pieces (the “application‑layer rotation”) argue capital is moving from chipmakers to software shops; Apple is mentioned as a potential beneficiary over time but is cast as a latecomer, so near‑term impact is uncertain. The Application-Layer Rotation: 3 AI Pure Plays Poised to Win in 2026 (AAPL)
• Neutral Sentiment: Performance roundups note Apple’s steady 2025 gains (year‑to‑date performance and a defensive, cash‑generative profile), a reminder that broader market positioning and index flows remain tailwinds but not new catalysts. $1,000 invested in Apple stock at the start of 2025 returned
• Negative Sentiment: Social and data‑driven summaries flag mixed sentiment around Apple’s AI model releases and continuing regulatory/legal scrutiny; the same QuiverQuant summary also highlights heavy insider selling over the last six months, which can sap near‑term sentiment even if fundamentals remain intact. Apple Inc. Stock (AAPL) Opinions on AI Model Release and Regulatory Updates

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 target price (up from $315.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Apple from $180.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Apple to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Apple from $275.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, November 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.92.

Apple Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $273.76 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $272.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $242.85. The company has a market capitalization of $4.05 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.10. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.21 and a 1 year high of $288.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The iPhone maker reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.11. Apple had a return on equity of 164.05% and a net margin of 26.92%.The business had revenue of $102.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $101.65 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.64 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 10th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 43,013 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,181,866.93. This represents a 23.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 129,963 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.81, for a total transaction of $33,375,798.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,280,295 shares in the company, valued at $842,412,558.95. This trade represents a 3.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 228,052 shares of company stock worth $58,604,588. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.