Apple Inc. $AAPL Position Lowered by SmartHarvest Portfolios LLC

SmartHarvest Portfolios LLC trimmed its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 19.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 53,903 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 13,140 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up 5.7% of SmartHarvest Portfolios LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. SmartHarvest Portfolios LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $13,680,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. First National Bank of Hutchinson lifted its holdings in Apple by 24.6% during the 4th quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $8,845,000 after buying an additional 6,982 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $13,544,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $134,554,000 after acquiring an additional 69,207 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,857 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $16,742,000 after acquiring an additional 2,695 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE raised its position in shares of Apple by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 50,264 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $12,587,000 after acquiring an additional 1,155 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on AAPL shares. KGI Securities downgraded Apple from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $315.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $276.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, June 26th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned 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 has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $314.85.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In related news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,425,754.82. This represents a 0.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $421,850.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,366 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,675,650. This represents a 10.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 2,924 shares of company stock valued at $825,546. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple plans at least five new iPhone models through early 2027, including a stronger foldable iPhone push, have reinforced expectations for a fresh product cycle and a longer growth runway. Apple plans five new iPhones through 2027, eyes Chinese-made chips amid foldable push, reports say
• Positive Sentiment: Apple also appears to be benefiting from investor optimism that it can navigate the memory-chip shortage and secure supply, including possible deals with lower-cost Chinese chipmakers, which could help protect future production. Apple negotiates with blacklisted Chinese chipmakers amid AI-driven memory crunch
• Positive Sentiment: Several market commentary pieces said Apple is holding up better than the broader tech sector, with traders viewing recent weakness as a buying opportunity and analysts still pointing to solid upside potential. Apple’s Aggressive Price Hikes Raise Eyebrows As Wall Street Links AI Chip Shortages To Inflation Pressure
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s recent price hikes on Macs and iPads are being interpreted two ways: as a sign of inflationary component costs, but also as a margin-protection move that may not hurt demand as much as feared. Jim Cramer’s Latest Thought on Apple Inc. (AAPL)
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s insider-selling activity and mixed institutional positioning are adding caution, but they are not the main driver of the stock today. Apple Stock (AAPL) Opinions on Recent Price Hikes and Analyst Views
• Negative Sentiment: Some coverage continues to flag pressure on Apple’s margins and demand if higher component costs force more price increases, which could weigh on sentiment over time. Is Apple stock in trouble? Rising costs threaten margins, demand

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $308.63 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.53 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.10. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $201.50 and a 52-week high of $317.40. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $295.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $273.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share 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 analysts’ expectations of $109.46 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.65 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were given a $0.27 dividend. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 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.