Advisory Services Network LLC Acquires 8,210 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Advisory Services Network LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 892,038 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,210 shares during the period. Apple comprises 3.3% of Advisory Services Network LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Advisory Services Network LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $227,140,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. raised its position in shares of Apple by 0.4% during the third quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. now owns 9,898 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,520,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. American Alpha Advisors LLC increased its position in Apple by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. American Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 1,151 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $293,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Capstone Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,537 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,174,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Seven Springs Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Seven Springs Wealth Group LLC now owns 15,451 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $3,934,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Avant Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 0.9% in the third quarter. Avant Capital LLC now owns 4,814 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $1,226,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CEO Tim Cook publicly dismissed retirement rumors and reinforced his commitment to Apple’s roadmap and upcoming AI milestones, reducing leadership uncertainty that had weighed on sentiment. Tim Cook squashes retirement rumors, says he ‘can’t imagine life without Apple’
• Positive Sentiment: Product refreshes: Apple unveiled AirPods Max 2 with upgraded features (H2 chip, improved ANC, live translation), and expanded its MacBook lineup with M5 chips — news that supports hardware revenue and drew an Evercore reaffirmation of Outperform. Apple unveils second-generation AirPods Max at $549, more than five years after debut
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic M&A: Apple acquired MotionVFX, a Final Cut Pro plugin maker, strengthening its creator tools and services ecosystem — a move that can help services/subscriptions monetization for pro users. Apple acquires video editing software company MotionVFX
• Positive Sentiment: Brand extensions: Beats launched Nike‑branded earbuds in a first hardware collaboration, showing continued diversification of accessory demand and co‑branding opportunities. Apple’s Beats Launches Nike‑Branded Earbuds in Its First‑Ever Hardware Collaboration
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro/market flows: A broader shift of investor interest toward value ETFs (amid geopolitical uncertainty) is altering sector flows; not Apple‑specific but can affect relative demand for large growth names. 2 ETFs Have Similar Names. Their Performances Couldn’t Be More Different.
• Neutral Sentiment: Supply‑chain & supplier notes: Nvidia/Samsung foundry news and Foxconn’s mixed results keep focus on Apple’s manufacturing partners — potential upside if foundry capacity and iPhone assembly remain robust, but margins/supply risks persist. Samsung shares rise after Nvidia’s Huang flags tie-up on new AI chips
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest notices in March appear inconsistent/immaterial in the data reported and are unlikely to be a driver today.
• Negative Sentiment: Reputational/operational criticism: Elon Musk publicly called iOS app‑review delays “ridiculous,” reigniting debate about App Store policy and developer friction — a potential negative for developer relations and platform perception. Elon Musk Has One Word for This Apple Problem: ‘Ridiculous’
• Negative Sentiment: Relative performance pressure: Coverage noting Apple has lagged some peers (Magnificent 7 commentary) underscores investor concerns about AI leadership and near‑term growth vs. names like Nvidia, which can cap multiple expansion. NVIDIA Leads Magnificent 7 Stocks in March while Apple and Tesla Slide

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AAPL. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $315.00 target price (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Maxim Group upgraded shares of Apple from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Stephens set a $315.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, CLSA raised their price target on shares of Apple from $265.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $297.58.

Apple Stock Up 0.6%

Apple stock opened at $254.23 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.73 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $261.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $262.04. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $288.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is 13.15%.

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.