VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Acquires New Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 3,245,235 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock, valued at approximately $939,041,000. Apple accounts for 5.6% of VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest holding.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Avenir Tech Ltd bought a new stake in Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Apple by 822.7% in the second quarter. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC now owns 292,493 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $85,000 after acquiring an additional 260,792 shares during the period. Finally, Basso Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at about $88,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Potential AI upside: Analyst Dan Ives said Apple could become a “toll collector” for consumer AI by monetizing its more than 2.5 billion active devices and Services ecosystem. He estimates AI could add approximately $75 per share to the company’s value. Apple Could Be the Toll Collector of Consumer AI
• Positive Sentiment: Smart-home expansion: Apple’s planned October 13 “Welcome Home” event could introduce products such as a smart lock, thermostat and doorbell. The initiative may expand Apple’s hardware and Services opportunities and strengthen its position against Amazon and Google. Apple Smart Home Push
• Neutral Sentiment: Possible seasonal order adjustment: Bespoke Investment Group noted that Apple’s autumn iPhone order reductions have occurred in prior years and have sometimes been followed by a stock recovery. Investors will look for evidence that the latest cuts reflect normal supply-chain management rather than lasting demand weakness. Apple’s iPhone Order Cut and Stock Rebound
• Negative Sentiment: iPhone demand concerns: Nikkei Asia reported that Apple asked suppliers to cut iPhone 18 Pro component production, raising concerns that premium pricing is discouraging consumers. The reports are particularly important because Apple is preparing to pursue an even higher-priced product strategy, including a rumored $1,999 foldable iPhone. Apple Cuts iPhone 18 Pro Orders Due to Soft Demand
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and execution risks: Apple’s elevated earnings multiple leaves less room for disappointment, while higher memory costs could pressure margins. A recent senior vice president stock sale was relatively small but adds to near-term caution. Apple Senior Vice President Stock Sale

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AAPL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. DZ Bank cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $310.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. China Renaissance downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $329.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Arete Research boosted their price target on Apple from $305.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $340.02.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other Apple news, insider Timothy Cook sold 191,753 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.96, for a total value of $63,846,078.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 3,264,168 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,086,837,377.28. This trade represents a 5.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.01, for a total transaction of $796,491.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 39,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,145,271.93. This represents a 5.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 279,383 shares of company stock worth $92,912,517 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of AAPL opened at $336.64 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company has a market cap of $4.91 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.61, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $322.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $302.99. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.42 and a 52-week high of $345.34.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.13. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%. The company had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.57 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.39%.

Apple Company Profile

Apple Inc is a technology company that designs, develops and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its best-known products include the iPhone smartphone, Mac personal computers, iPad tablets, Apple Watch, AirPods and other accessories. The company also develops operating systems and software platforms, including iOS, macOS, iPadOS, watchOS and visionOS.

Apple’s services business includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, Apple Fitness+ and iCloud.