Apple Inc. $AAPL is Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.’s 6th Largest Position

Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 26.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 752,384 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 158,269 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 1.9% of Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.’s holdings in Apple were worth $190,948,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AAPL. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $52,266,468,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Apple during the first quarter worth $17,472,482,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its position in Apple by 890.7% during the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 41,984,810 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $11,413,990,000 after buying an additional 37,746,784 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Apple by 20,464.8% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27,069,029 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $5,553,753,000 after buying an additional 26,937,401 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Apple by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $387,749,545,000 after buying an additional 26,856,752 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Trading Down 6.1%

AAPL stock opened at $275.15 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $199.26 and a 12-month high of $317.40. The business’s 50-day moving average is $292.16 and its 200 day moving average is $273.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $4.04 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.27, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.09.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. The business 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 business’s revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.65 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current fiscal 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 issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This is an increase from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Apple’s payout ratio is 13.06%.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts say the price hikes could help Apple protect margins by passing through rising component costs, and long-term bulls still view the company as financially strong. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s AI strategy remains a work in progress, with some coverage saying the company’s AI upgrade likely will not be a major near-term catalyst for the stock. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Apple’s decision to raise Mac and iPad prices has sparked concern about weaker demand and “demand friction,” especially if consumers push back on higher-priced devices. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market weakness and a tech selloff added pressure, with Apple leading the downside among major technology names. Article Title

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of Apple 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 sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 company’s 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 directly owned 13,366 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,675,650. The trade was a 10.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 97,875 shares of company stock worth $24,998,541. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, June 8th. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $380.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $314.85.

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.