Paladin Partners LLC Sells 4,496 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Paladin Partners LLC lowered its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 22.9% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 15,177 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 4,496 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for approximately 2.8% of Paladin Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Paladin Partners LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $3,852,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. First National Bank of Hutchinson lifted its position in Apple by 24.6% during the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $8,845,000 after purchasing an additional 6,982 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Apple by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $13,544,000 after buying an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $134,554,000 after buying an additional 69,207 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,857 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $16,742,000 after buying an additional 2,695 shares during 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 valued at $12,587,000 after buying an additional 1,155 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL opened at $305.93 on Monday. 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’s 50 day simple moving average is $308.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $285.40. The firm has a market cap of $4.46 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.08, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.09. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $223.78 and a 1 year high of $344.57.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $109.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%.The business’s revenue was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.57 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. Apple’s payout ratio is presently 12.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AAPL. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $245.00 price objective (down from $253.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 31st. Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 31st. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Apple from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $285.56 to $263.66 in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and set a $365.00 price objective (up from $315.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, July 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $328.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total value of $34,236.24. Following the sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,425,754.82. This trade represents a 0.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing 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, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.75, for a total transaction of $442,852.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 40,107 shares in the company, valued at $12,342,929.25. The trade was a 3.46% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple is reportedly training a China-specific large language model with Alibaba’s support. The initiative could bring Apple Intelligence to Chinese users, improve Apple’s competitive position against Huawei and reduce reliance on third-party AI models in a key market. Apple trains China-specific AI model
• Positive Sentiment: Apple opened an advanced manufacturing center in Houston that will support AI-server production, Mac mini assembly and workforce training. The facility reinforces Apple’s U.S. investment plans and may improve supply-chain resilience and relations with policymakers. Apple opens Houston manufacturing facility
• Positive Sentiment: Apple reportedly received about $2.2 billion in tariff refunds. The cash recovery could offset some trade-related expenses and support near-term earnings and cash flow. Apple tariff refund report
• Positive Sentiment: Apple is discussing usage-based content agreements with publishers to improve the upgraded Siri’s access to current information. A stronger Siri could help narrow Apple’s perceived AI gap and support future services growth. Apple publisher talks for Siri
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple proposed a 15% commission on purchases made through external links in iOS apps amid its continuing legal dispute with Epic. The proposal could preserve some App Store revenue, but the final regulatory and legal outcome remains uncertain. Apple proposes external purchase commission
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s valuation remains demanding, with a market capitalization near $4.5 trillion and a forward earnings outlook that leaves the stock sensitive to execution. An insider sale by SVP Jennifer Newstead was disclosed, though such transactions do not necessarily indicate a change in corporate fundamentals. Apple insider sale
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies downgraded Apple, citing concerns about the canceled or delayed all-glass iPhone concept, limited near-term AI momentum and rising memory-chip costs. Higher component prices could pressure margins and make it harder for Apple to justify its premium valuation. Jefferies Apple downgrade and iPhone concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Google’s Pixel 11 is placing Gemini more deeply into the smartphone experience, raising the competitive stakes for Apple ahead of the iPhone 18 launch and Siri’s broader overhaul.

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.