Rather & Kittrell Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Rather & Kittrell Inc. raised its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 22.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,427 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after buying an additional 2,666 shares during the period. Apple comprises about 0.6% of Rather & Kittrell Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest position. Rather & Kittrell Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $3,674,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% in the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Nexus Investment Management ULC boosted its stake in Apple by 333.3% in the second quarter. Nexus Investment Management ULC now owns 260 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $65,000. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 41.0% during the second quarter. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC now owns 430 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HFM Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the first quarter worth about $99,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple is preparing a “game?changer” iPhone—investors interpret new hardware cycles as a revenue/opportunity catalyst for iPhone upgrades. Apple is about to launch a ‘game-changer’ iPhone
• Positive Sentiment: Sanford C. Bernstein and other outlets have lifted targets/outperform calls (Bernstein raised its target toward ~$340), citing a strong iPhone 17 cycle and Apple Intelligence — analyst upgrades increase buy-side conviction. Apple Stock To Rise Despite Memory Chip Crunch, Says Top Analyst— Hints At ‘Bigger Story’ Unfolding In 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Evercore/other brokers reiterated Outperform/Buy ratings with elevated price targets (Evercore $330), reinforcing the analyst support behind the rally. Apple: Strong Fundamentals and AI Roadmap Underpin Outperform Rating and $330 Target
• Positive Sentiment: Corporate fundamentals showing strength — reports note rising free cash flow margins and continued buybacks/dividend distribution (quarterly $0.26 payment), which support valuation and shareholder returns. Apple’s FCF Margins Surge and Its Target Value Rises – What’s the Best AAPL Stock Play?
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional buying: Fisher Asset Management increased its stake, a vote of confidence from a large manager. Fisher Asset Management Boosts Apple Stake by 704,293 Shares
• Neutral Sentiment: UK regulator engagement: Apple and Google agreed on app?store changes to appease the UK regulator — reduces regulatory overhang but may require concessions. Apple and Google agree app store changes to appease UK regulator
• Neutral Sentiment: Bernstein and others flag a global memory?chip crunch — a potential cost/headwind — but say upcoming product/AI catalysts could outweigh the supply?side pressure. Apple Stock To Rise Despite Memory Chip Crunch, Says Top Analyst— Hints At ‘Bigger Story’ Unfolding In 2026
• Negative Sentiment: Software rollout issues: reports say the new Siri/iOS 26.5 features are not reliably functional in early tests — product software snags can dent user experience and slow feature monetization. Apple’s latest attempt to launch new Siri runs into snags
• Negative Sentiment: Morningstar Investment Management trimmed its Apple position sharply — a large manager reducing exposure can add downward pressure or signal profit?taking. Morningstar Investment Management Cuts Apple Inc Position Sharply

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AAPL. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on Apple from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Phillip Securities raised shares of Apple from a “moderate sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 1st. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $292.13.

Apple Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of Apple stock opened at $275.50 on Thursday. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $288.62. The company has a market cap of $4.04 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.83, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.97. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $267.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $255.17.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $143.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $138.25 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.04% and a return on equity of 159.94%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.40 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 9th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is 13.15%.

Apple 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.