Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Acquired by Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.9% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,062,035 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,507 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up 3.3% of Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings, making the stock its largest holding. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $269,534,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $52,266,468,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the first quarter valued at $17,472,482,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 890.7% in the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 41,984,810 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $11,413,990,000 after purchasing an additional 37,746,784 shares during the period. 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 valued at $5,553,753,000 after buying an additional 26,937,401 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Apple by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $387,749,545,000 after acquiring an additional 26,856,752 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total value of $369,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,226,770. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $421,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,366 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,675,650. This represents a 10.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,924 shares of company stock worth $825,546. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on AAPL shares. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Apple from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $276.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $380.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, June 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $314.85.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS said iPhone demand is improving in key markets, though it does not appear to be driven by Apple Intelligence. Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone Demand Is Improving, But AI Isn’t The Reason Why
• Positive Sentiment: Several articles highlighted Apple as a favored large-cap name, with bullish pieces citing seasonal strength, Warren Buffett-style appeal, and strong long-term fundamentals. This Stock is My Biggest Bet For July
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s AI expansion remains a focus, with reports saying the company is weaving AI deeper into services and hardware, but competition from Alphabet and Microsoft keeps expectations in check. Apple’s AI Expansion Aims to Boost Services Momentum: What’s Ahead?
• Negative Sentiment: Apple is dealing with a reported memory-chip crunch that has already forced price increases on some products, which could pressure margins and demand if costs stay elevated. Apple negotiates with blacklisted Chinese chipmakers amid AI-driven memory crunch
• Negative Sentiment: Supply-chain and cybersecurity concerns also weighed on sentiment after reports of a Tata Electronics breach exposed confidential iPhone 18 Pro-related information. Apple’s China Memory Push Could Be a Win for AAPL Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory pressure remains a risk, with Russia warning of a possible fine and the U.K. CMA targeting Apple’s App Store payment rules, which could eventually hit services revenue. Russia warns Apple of $52 million fine over alleged bias against local apps

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL stock opened at $294.38 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.32 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 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. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $201.50 and a fifty-two week high of $317.40. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $293.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $273.39.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

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

About Apple

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.