Ghe LLC Boosts Stock Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Ghe LLC lifted its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 321.2% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 6,764 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,158 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 0.4% of Ghe LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Ghe LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $1,717,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Overbrook Management Corp boosted its position in shares of Apple by 57.4% during the 4th quarter. Overbrook Management Corp now owns 104,648 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $28,449,000 after acquiring an additional 38,174 shares during the last quarter. Rainier Family Wealth Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Rainier Family Wealth Inc. now owns 24,386 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $6,189,000 after acquiring an additional 3,014 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter worth $1,178,000. Summit Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Apple by 108.3% during the first quarter. Summit Wealth Partners LLC now owns 34,989 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $8,880,000 after buying an additional 18,188 shares during the period. Finally, Adventist Health System Sunbelt Healthcare Corp purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at about $105,482,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Trading Up 1.2%

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $336.91 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $307.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $279.61. The stock has a market cap of $4.95 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $201.50 and a 12 month high of $339.57.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.65 earnings per share. Apple’s quarterly revenue was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 EPS for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This is a positive change from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Apple’s payout ratio is presently 13.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total transaction of $369,460.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,226,770. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on AAPL shares. UBS Group set a $365.00 price objective on Apple in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, May 1st. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Apple from $335.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price objective on Apple from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $327.40.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Market-cap leadership and momentum: Apple reclaimed the title of the world’s largest company as Nvidia shares declined. The move reinforces investor confidence in Apple’s resilient consumer business and has made AAPL a relative outperformer among major technology stocks. Apple ends day as world’s most valuable company, passing Nvidia
• Positive Sentiment: Earnings optimism: Apple reports results on July 30, with analysts expecting continued iPhone demand, Services growth, and potentially strong Mac revenue. Goldman Sachs raised its price target and expects performance above consensus on iPhone and Mac sales, while Bank of America anticipates a Services-driven earnings beat. Goldman Raises Apple Stock Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Investor positioning: Options activity indicates traders are preparing for a sizable upward move following earnings. The stock has risen about 20% from its late-June low, reflecting elevated expectations for the report and Apple’s product ecosystem. Apple options are doing something unusual into earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Future product catalysts: Apple is reportedly emphasizing privacy as it develops smart glasses for a potential 2027 launch, while investors continue to speculate about a foldable iPhone and incoming CEO John Ternus’s ability to drive the next major product cycle. Apple Puts Privacy at Center of Smart Glasses Push
• Negative Sentiment: AI execution concerns: Investors remain divided over Apple’s comparatively restrained AI spending and strategy, particularly as rivals commit hundreds of billions of dollars to AI infrastructure. A disappointing outlook or evidence that Apple is falling behind could pressure the stock after its strong run. Apple Is Barely Spending on AI
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and component-cost risks: At roughly 41 times earnings, Apple has limited room for an earnings miss. Potential tariffs and higher memory-chip prices could increase iPhone production costs and compress hardware margins, although Apple is reportedly seeking permission to use Chinese memory components in international devices. Apple stock and memory-cost analysis

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.