Investment Research Partners LLC Acquires New Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Investment Research Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 26,301 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock, valued at approximately $7,093,000. Apple comprises about 3.2% of Investment Research Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. First National Bank of Hutchinson lifted its position in shares of Apple by 24.6% during the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $8,845,000 after acquiring an additional 6,982 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $13,544,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $134,554,000 after purchasing an additional 69,207 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $16,742,000 after purchasing an additional 2,695 shares during the period. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE lifted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 1,155 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on AAPL. Rosenblatt Securities raised their target price on Apple from $267.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, December 29th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price objective on shares of Apple from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $315.00 target price (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $297.58.

Apple Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $247.99 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The business has a 50-day moving average of $260.99 and a 200-day moving average of $261.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.64 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.35, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $288.62.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.17. Apple had a net margin of 27.04% and a return on equity of 159.94%. The business had revenue of $143.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $138.25 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.40 earnings per share. Apple’s quarterly revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.15%.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: China strength: iPhone sales in China jumped ~23% in the first nine weeks of 2026, outpacing a weak local market and supporting Apple’s revenue and unit growth prospects in a key market. Apple’s China smartphone sales jump 23%
• Positive Sentiment: Product demand: Apple’s Mac had its best-ever launch week for first-time customers, signaling continued strength in Mac demand that can help hardware revenue mix. Apple Mac sees best ever launch week
• Positive Sentiment: Legal win on Apple Watch: A U.S. trade tribunal preliminarily ruled redesigned Apple Watches don’t infringe Masimo patents, fending off a renewed import ban and removing a regulatory/shutdown risk for Watch shipments. Apple Watch clears key patent challenge
• Positive Sentiment: AI/App Store monetization: Reporting suggests Apple made ~$900M from AI-related App Store activity last year and could top $1B soon — a recurring, high-margin revenue stream that supports services growth. Apple made $900M from AI
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO outreach: Tim Cook’s China visit reinforces focus on local partnerships and regulatory navigation — positive strategically but not an immediate earnings catalyst. Tim Cook’s China visit
• Neutral Sentiment: New integrations and content deals (Apple Health integrations, Apple TV sports/content deals) expand ecosystem stickiness but their near-term revenue impact is uncertain. Apple Health integrates with Perplexity Health
• Negative Sentiment: Security risk: Researchers flagged the “DarkSword” iOS exploit and related spyware/ghostblade campaigns targeting crypto wallets; Apple has issued alerts and pushed patches — security scares can dent consumer confidence and spur short-term churn or support costs. DarkSword iPhone exploit threatens wallets
• Negative Sentiment: Market sentiment and positioning: Some AI-driven price models are bearish for Q2 and there’s visible insider selling and mixed analyst positioning — these contribute to short-term selling pressure. AI sets Apple stock price for Q2 2026

Apple Company 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.