CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC Grows Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 8.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 65,003 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,114 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 1.3% of CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest position. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $17,672,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Constant Guidance Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. Constant Guidance Financial LLC now owns 18,372 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $4,995,000 after purchasing an additional 3,156 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 418,362 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $113,736,000 after purchasing an additional 17,679 shares in the last quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP grew its position in shares of Apple by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 877,458 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $238,546,000 after purchasing an additional 113,082 shares in the last quarter. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $860,000. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at $187,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Investors were disappointed that Siri’s AI overhaul still appears behind rivals, with launch timing stretching into later this year and some features limited to the U.S. at first. Apple shares slide after big Siri AI reveal
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts warned that Apple is relying on Google Gemini/Nvidia infrastructure for parts of its advanced AI stack, raising questions about how much of the AI value capture Apple keeps in-house. Apple failed to make its AI tool to comply to EU regulations, EU Commission says
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley said the new Siri features may be held back by older iPhones, limiting the near-term upgrade cycle and the addressable installed base. Apple’s AI Siri will be held back by aging devices, Morgan Stanley says

Apple Stock Down 3.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $290.55 on Wednesday. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $195.07 and a 52-week high of $317.40. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $283.19 and a 200 day moving average of $271.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.27 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. The company had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.65 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current fiscal 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 given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.06%.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total value of $16,511,984.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,280,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $833,980,668.14. The trade was a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total transaction of $369,460.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,226,770. The trade was a 3.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 97,759 shares of company stock valued at $24,964,305 over the last ninety days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday. Tigress Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $375.00 price target (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $330.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $314.59.

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.