AMI Asset Management Corp Cuts Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

AMI Asset Management Corp lowered its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 452,765 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 13,405 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 7.3% of AMI Asset Management Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. AMI Asset Management Corp’s holdings in Apple were worth $114,907,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Powell Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 7.1% during the first quarter. Powell Investment Advisors LLC now owns 14,349 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $3,642,000 after purchasing an additional 956 shares in the last quarter. Conscious Wealth Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 763.2% in the 1st quarter. Conscious Wealth Investments LLC now owns 17,678 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $4,710,000 after buying an additional 15,630 shares in the last quarter. Members Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 8.8% in the 1st quarter. Members Wealth LLC now owns 11,538 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $3,152,000 after buying an additional 937 shares in the last quarter. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 5.0% in the first quarter. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. now owns 154,732 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $39,269,000 after buying an additional 7,322 shares during the period. Finally, Master S Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 9.6% in the first quarter. Master S Wealth Management Inc. now owns 13,177 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $3,344,000 after buying an additional 1,149 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Apple Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $316.16 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $298.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $274.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.64 trillion, a P/E ratio of 38.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.10. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $201.50 and a 12-month high of $317.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.The firm had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.65 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total value of $369,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,226,770. The trade was a 3.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $421,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,366 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,675,650. This represents a 10.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 2,924 shares of company stock worth $825,546 in the last 90 days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple announced a multiyear partnership with Broadcom worth more than $30 billion to design and produce U.S.-made custom silicon and wireless chips, its largest domestic manufacturing commitment to date. The deal improves supply-chain resiliency and supports future product cycles. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan said Apple’s recent price increases for Mac and iPad, and any possible iPhone hikes, are unlikely to significantly hurt demand, and it raised its price target while reiterating a Buy rating. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: UBS said App Store data points to roughly 3% growth in Apple’s June quarter, signaling that services revenue remains resilient even as U.S. revenue softens somewhat. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several pieces framed Apple as a potential leader in a broader “Magnificent Seven” rebound, but these were mostly market commentary rather than company-specific catalysts. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: An EU court rejected Apple’s challenge to Digital Markets Act gatekeeper rules, leaving the company exposed to tighter App Store and iOS antitrust obligations in Europe. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Hedgeye reportedly added Apple as a new short idea, which may be adding some caution around the stock’s near-term valuation after a strong run. Article Title

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on AAPL. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $276.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $375.00 price target (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, June 26th. One equities research 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 given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $314.85.

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.