Welch & Forbes LLC Sells 22,288 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Welch & Forbes LLC trimmed its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.3% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,679,909 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 22,288 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for approximately 5.5% of Welch & Forbes LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $426,344,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% in the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth $69,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth $76,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ford said it will embed Apple Maps into upcoming EVs, expanding Apple’s software reach and reinforcing the value of its ecosystem. Ford Embeds Apple Maps Directly into Upcoming EVs
• Positive Sentiment: Baird raised its price target on Apple and reiterated an Outperform rating, adding to bullish analyst momentum. Finviz
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary highlighted Apple as outperforming the broader market, supported by strong ratings and a favorable chart setup ahead of earnings. Why is Apple stock outperforming the broader market?
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple was also the subject of discussion around upcoming product launches, AI features, and a possible device-leasing program, which could support demand but remain unconfirmed or longer-term in nature.
• Negative Sentiment: Some reports noted concerns that Apple’s valuation is stretched heading into earnings, and insider sales plus short-interest chatter may temper enthusiasm if results disappoint.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Maxim Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $350.00 target price (up from $310.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and set a $365.00 price objective (up from $315.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Tigress Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $375.00 price objective (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Apple from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $260.00 to $366.00 in a report on Thursday, July 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $327.40.

Apple Price Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $333.02 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.89 trillion, a PE ratio of 40.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.10. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $201.50 and a 1-year high of $334.99. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $306.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $279.09. 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 (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $111.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.46 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.65 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total value of $369,460.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,226,770. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.