WealthPlan Investment Management LLC Sells 5,069 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

WealthPlan Investment Management LLC decreased its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.3% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 386,371 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 5,069 shares during the period. Apple makes up 6.5% of WealthPlan Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its largest position. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $98,382,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% during the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $65,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC raised its position in Apple by 333.3% in the second quarter. Nexus Investment Management ULC now owns 260 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 41.0% during the second quarter. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC now owns 430 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, HFM Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Apple during the first quarter valued at approximately $99,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Apple Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $278.12 on Friday. 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 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $288.62. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $268.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $253.62. The company has a market capitalization of $4.08 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.16, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.09.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AAPL. Wall Street Zen cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, November 9th. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price objective on Apple from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Apple from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. KGI Securities upgraded shares of Apple to an “outperform” rating and set a $306.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Maxim Group raised shares of Apple from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $291.70.

Apple News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple preparing to allow third‑party voice AI/chatbots (ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude) in CarPlay — a strategic shift that could boost in‑car services, user engagement and partnerships across the AI ecosystem. Apple plans to allow external voice-controlled AI chatbots in CarPlay
• Positive Sentiment: Strong Q1 results (higher‑than‑expected revenue and EPS, large iPhone sales) continue to support investor confidence and explain why AAPL is outperforming many Big Tech peers after the AI‑led sell‑off.
• Positive Sentiment: EU says Apple Ads and Apple Maps should not be designated under the Digital Markets Act — avoids potential regulatory constraints and commercial disruption in Europe. Apple Ads and Apple Maps should not be designated under Digital Markets Act, says EU
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support and bullish price targets remain — several firms have reiterated Outperform/Overweight calls and above‑consensus targets (median recent target ~$310), underpinning investor interest. Evercore ISI stays Outperform on Apple
• Positive Sentiment: Inclusion in new Big Tech ETF offerings and continued institutional buying signal durable demand from funds and passive vehicles. Big Tech Core: New Burney ETF Packs Apple, Nvidia, Google, Broadcom Punch
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest data currently shows anomalies (reporting zeros/NaN) and offers no clear signal on bearish positioning — not market‑moving as reported.
• Neutral Sentiment: Global memory‑chip shortages raise questions about iPhone pricing vs. margin trade‑offs; could preserve margins (price increases) or dent volume if Apple raises prices — impact unclear near term. Pricier iPhones? Global memory chip crunch puts spotlight on Apple
• Negative Sentiment: Apple has scaled back its AI health‑coach initiative (project “Mulberry”), highlighting execution and monetization challenges for new paid services tied to health/wearables. That could temper parts‑of‑services growth expectations. Apple Scales Back AI Health Coach Plans
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing insider selling is visible in regulatory filings; while routine at large cap firms, it can be interpreted negatively by some investors when concentrated.

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.