Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Sold by Bristlecone Advisors LLC

Bristlecone Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 10.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 177,528 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 20,962 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for approximately 3.8% of Bristlecone Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Bristlecone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $45,204,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. First National Bank of Hutchinson increased its position in shares of Apple by 24.6% in 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 lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $13,544,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Apple by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $134,554,000 after purchasing an additional 69,207 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Apple by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,857 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $16,742,000 after purchasing an additional 2,695 shares during the period. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE increased its holdings in Apple by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 50,264 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $12,587,000 after purchasing an additional 1,155 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on AAPL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $330.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Friday. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $270.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and issued a $315.00 target price (down from $330.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Apple and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. One investment 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 assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $291.41.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong iPhone 17 demand drove better-than-expected Q1 results and margin expansion, supporting upgrades and a more bullish outlook for revenue and profitability. The iPhone 17 Changed Everything For Apple – See China (Rating Upgrade)
• Positive Sentiment: Big banks reiterated bullish calls (Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan) citing continued iPhone 17 strength — analyst support is lifting sentiment and contributed to price-target increases. Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Bullish on Apple Inc. (AAPL) on Strong iPhone 17 Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Several brokerages raised price targets and upgraded Apple after the quarter, adding buy-side momentum and helping push the stock higher. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Price Target Raised to $315.00
• Positive Sentiment: OpenAI launched a Codex coding-assistant app for Apple computers, highlighting tighter AI app integration in the Mac ecosystem and potential demand/support for Mac hardware and services. OpenAI Unveils Codex App for Use with Apple (AAPL) Computers
• Positive Sentiment: Report that Apple acquired Israeli AI/audio startup Q.ai (≈$2B) strengthens the company’s AI content/capability pipeline and supports the AI narrative. Apple Inc. (AAPL) Acquires Israeli Startup Q.ai For Approximately $2 Billion: Report
• Neutral Sentiment: T. Rowe Price launched an active Innovation Leaders ETF that lists Apple as a core holding — potential incremental passive/active inflows but not immediate earnings impact. Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft Anchor T. Rowe Price’s New Active ETF Targeting Innovators
• Neutral Sentiment: India’s policy allowing foreign-funded equipment for contract manufacturers is a structural win for Apple’s India build-out and long-term cost/scale — supports supply diversification. India hands Apple a win by letting foreign firms fund equipment for manufacturers
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest figures in the feed are effectively zero/erroneous and aren’t influencing the move; no clear short-squeeze signal from this data. (Source: short-interest entry)
• Negative Sentiment: Supply risk: TSMC’s capacity shift toward AI chips (Nvidia demand) could squeeze Apple’s wafer allocations and exacerbate chip constraints, a risk to near-term production and inventory. Nvidia’s AI Takeover Leaves Apple Fighting For Supply
• Negative Sentiment: Talent and margin pressure: reports of AI researcher departures and commentary that rising AI-driven parts demand could lift component costs create medium-term execution and margin risks. Apple Loses More AI Researchers to Meta and Google The AI Boom Is Coming for Apple’s Profit Margins

Apple Price Performance

AAPL opened at $270.05 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.97 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.14, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a 50-day moving average of $268.26 and a 200-day moving average of $252.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.97. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $288.62.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 3,752 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.23, for a total value of $1,017,654.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 15,098 shares in the company, valued at $4,095,030.54. The trade was a 19.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.