Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. Trims Stock Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. lessened its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 23.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,801 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 3,060 shares during the period. Apple accounts for approximately 1.8% of Littlejohn Financial Services Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Littlejohn Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $2,496,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Capstone Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 0.5% during the third quarter. Capstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,537 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,174,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Baker Boyer National Bank increased its position in Apple by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Baker Boyer National Bank now owns 18,011 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $3,695,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Beddow Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Apple by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Beddow Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,597 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $533,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Uncommon Cents Investing LLC lifted its position in Apple by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Uncommon Cents Investing LLC now owns 10,609 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,701,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Apple by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. now owns 9,646 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $2,456,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Up 0.8%

AAPL opened at $278.12 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.97. The company has a market cap of $4.08 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.16, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.09. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $288.62. The business’s fifty day moving average is $268.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $254.18.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.17. Apple had a return on equity of 159.94% and a net margin of 27.04%.The business had revenue of $143.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $138.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.40 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate 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 given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Apple’s payout ratio is presently 13.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAPL has been the subject of several analyst reports. CLSA upped their price target on Apple from $265.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Robert W. Baird set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 9th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities raised their price objective on shares of Apple from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $291.70.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

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.

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.