Weatherly Asset Management L. P. Has $82.19 Million Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Weatherly Asset Management L. P. lessened its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 323,858 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 7,392 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 6.6% of Weatherly Asset Management L. P.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Weatherly Asset Management L. P.’s holdings in Apple were worth $82,192,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. J. Derek Lewis & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at about $18,936,000. Up Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $1,583,000. Purpose Unlimited Inc. bought a new position in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,605,000. Painted Porch Advisors LLC raised its stake in Apple by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 55,696 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $15,141,000 after buying an additional 1,899 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Carter Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $1,577,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Down 0.7%

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $294.98 on Wednesday. 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 company’s fifty day moving average price is $291.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $273.06. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $199.26 and a 1-year high of $317.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.33 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.67, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.09.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.46 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is 13.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $421,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,366 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,675,650. The trade was a 10.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 30,002 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total value of $7,661,010.70. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,934,433.50. This represents a 17.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 97,875 shares of company stock valued at $24,998,541 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street is becoming more optimistic about Apple’s new Siri and AI strategy after the post-WWDC selloff, suggesting investors may be overreacting to near-term skepticism. After an Initial Panic, Wall Street’s Leaning Into Apple’s New Siri AI
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple has agreed to partner with Intel to design and manufacture chips in the U.S. are being viewed as a supply-chain diversification win and a long-term catalyst for Apple’s hardware roadmap. Apple’s Intel Deal Arrives at the Right Time for Its Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Tim Cook’s comments about higher memory costs and upcoming price increases are being interpreted by some analysts as supportive of Apple’s earnings power, since price hikes could help offset component inflation. Apple: Empirical Evidence Suggests Upcoming Price Hikes Will Boost Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s TV and streaming strategy is drawing attention, but the discussion appears more explanatory than immediately material to the stock. Apple Explains TV Library Strategy
• Neutral Sentiment: A Zacks comparison of NVIDIA and Apple highlights Apple’s lower valuation and services strength, reinforcing the stock’s defensive appeal without changing the near-term setup. NVIDIA vs. Apple: Which Tech Titan Is the Better Buy Right Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Britain’s competition tribunal approved a £3 billion class action over iCloud fees, adding a meaningful legal overhang and potential financial liability for Apple. UK tribunal gives go ahead for $4 billion lawsuit against Apple over iCloud services
• Negative Sentiment: Apple also faces reputational risk after closing its first unionized U.S. store, with the union accusing the company of retaliation. Apple Just Closed Its First Unionized U.S. Store
• Negative Sentiment: Several reports say Apple is forcing price increases on hardware because memory and chip costs are rising, which could pressure demand if consumers push back. Memory’s price surge threatens Apple’s ‘magic formula’ — and the economy

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $375.00 price target (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $310.00 price target (up from $300.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $310.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $314.85.

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.