Clearline Capital LP Makes New $11.46 Million Investment in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Clearline Capital LP acquired a new position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 45,000 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock, valued at approximately $11,458,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. boosted its position in shares of Apple by 18.4% during the third quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 220,060 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $56,034,000 after buying an additional 34,133 shares during the last quarter. Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC raised its position in Apple by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC now owns 394,561 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $100,467,000 after buying an additional 18,930 shares during the last quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. raised its position in Apple by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 2,479,363 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $631,299,000 after buying an additional 341,580 shares during the last quarter. Chilton Investment Co. Inc. lifted its stake in Apple by 37.9% during the 3rd quarter. Chilton Investment Co. Inc. now owns 95,238 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $24,250,000 after acquiring an additional 26,195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brass Tax Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Apple by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Brass Tax Wealth Management Inc. now owns 51,649 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $13,151,000 after acquiring an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s new low-cost devices (MacBook Neo, iPhone 17e) broaden addressable market and could win share versus cheaper Windows/Chromebooks — a strategic growth lever even if it pressures near-term margins. How Apple’s new low-cost MacBook Neo may shake up the market
• Positive Sentiment: Early Formula 1 ratings for AppleTV’s exclusive U.S. stream were strong, supporting the thesis that exclusive sports/content deals can grow Services subscriptions and engagement over time. Apple Gets Early Formula 1 Ratings Win
• Positive Sentiment: India’s plan to roll fresh smartphone manufacturing incentives could help Apple expand local production and improve margin/market access over the medium term. India plans fresh incentives for phone production
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views are mixed: a few firms raised targets or reiterated buys while others stay cautious/neutral; median price targets remain above the market, keeping a longer-term bullish backdrop but no unanimous near-term catalyst. Apple Stock Opinions on Tech Sector Pullback
• Negative Sentiment: Apple cut its mainland China App Store commission to 25% (and mini-app fees to 12%) after regulator talks — good for developer relations but a direct hit to Services take-rate and near-term revenue in its second?largest market. Apple cuts China App Store commission fees after government pressure
• Negative Sentiment: Strong insider selling and social/board chatter about a tech pullback and China demand risks are weighing on sentiment — traders are highlighting technical weakness and short-term bearish views. Apple Stock Opinions on Tech Sector Pullback
• Negative Sentiment: Macro and supply?chain risks (memory/storage cost inflation and geopolitical disruption tied to the Iran war) could raise component costs and compress device margins if Apple absorbs price moves to hold consumer prices. The Iran War Could Upend AI. Here’s How.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAPL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Apple from a “moderate sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 1st. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $350.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Apple from $239.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Scotiabank set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $297.58.

Apple Stock Down 2.2%

AAPL opened at $250.12 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $169.21 and a twelve month high of $288.62. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $262.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $261.52. The stock has a market cap of $3.67 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.62, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $143.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $138.25 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.04% and a return on equity of 159.94%. Apple’s quarterly revenue was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.40 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple’s payout ratio is presently 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.