Guardian Asset Advisors LLC Sells 2,108 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Guardian Asset Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 85,796 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 2,108 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises approximately 12.8% of Guardian Asset Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Guardian Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $28,580,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Sterling Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Apple by 0.3% during the second quarter. Sterling Wealth Management Inc. now owns 11,579 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $3,351,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Thor Investment Management Inc. OH ADV boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Thor Investment Management Inc. OH ADV now owns 1,912 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $637,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Evansbrook LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Evansbrook LLC now owns 8,095 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $2,054,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. JMG Financial Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Apple by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. JMG Financial Group Ltd. now owns 5,102 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,295,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Forward LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Forward LLC now owns 13,327 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $4,438,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Timothy D. Cook sold 191,753 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $336.18, for a total transaction of $806,495.82. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 41,992 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,116,870.56. The trade was a 5.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 289,252 shares of company stock worth $96,301,063 in the last 90 days. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on AAPL shares. Seaport Research Partners lowered Apple from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. DZ Bank downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $310.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $370.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group increased their target price on shares of Apple from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $340.49.

Apple Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of AAPL opened at $344.63 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.42 and a 12 month high of $351.73. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $333.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $296.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market cap of $5.03 trillion, a PE ratio of 39.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.07.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $109.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.57 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 8.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple acquired Ascension Labs, which operates as Ascend.io, gaining access to agentic artificial-intelligence talent and intellectual property. The deal supports Apple’s effort to strengthen its AI capabilities, although financial terms were not disclosed. Apple Acquires AI Firm Ascend.io Talent and Patents
• Positive Sentiment: Demand indicators remain supportive: the foldable iPhone Duo reportedly sold out quickly, orders are backed up, and Apple is positioned to benefit from strong iPhone, Mac and Services demand. Analysts including Bank of America and Goldman Sachs remain constructive, with BofA reiterating a Buy rating and a $370 price target. Analyst Reiterates Buy on Apple
• Positive Sentiment: The first touchscreen MacBook Pro, equipped with OLED displays and M5 Pro or M5 Max chips, expands Apple’s premium hardware lineup and could support a new product-cycle catalyst. Apple Shows First Touchscreen Laptops
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s earnings report is the immediate focus. Investors will look for evidence that revenue growth, Services momentum and AI investments can offset rising component costs and potentially slower holiday growth. Options activity suggests substantial volatility around the release. Apple November 2 Earnings Preview
• Negative Sentiment: AI-related demand has sharply increased flash-memory prices, raising concerns that Apple’s gross margin will come under pressure. Qualcomm also indicated that Apple-related revenue is declining faster than previously expected, reinforcing concerns about the pace of future iPhone growth. AI Has Made Flash Memory More Expensive
• Negative Sentiment: At roughly 40 times earnings and near its yearly high, Apple has limited room for an earnings or guidance disappointment. A senior vice president’s repeated stock sales and a South Korean fine related to app-market practices add modest additional caution. Apple Insider Selling

Apple Company Profile

Apple Inc designs, develops and sells consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its best-known products include the iPhone smartphone, Mac personal computers, iPad tablets, Apple Watch, AirPods and other accessories. The company also develops operating systems and applications that support its hardware ecosystem.

Apple’s services business includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV, Apple Arcade, iCloud, Apple Pay and other subscription, payment and digital-content offerings.