Hamel Associates Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Hamel Associates Inc. lowered its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 3.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 62,549 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 2,164 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 4.5% of Hamel Associates Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Hamel Associates Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $15,871,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Apple by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $387,749,545,000 after purchasing an additional 26,856,752 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Apple by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 604,056,505 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $164,218,801,000 after purchasing an additional 6,555,392 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 358,032,517 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $97,031,587,000 after buying an additional 1,866,103 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 230,483,035 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $62,659,118,000 after buying an additional 1,379,651 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $52,266,468,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on AAPL. KeyCorp reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $360.00 price target (down from $370.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday. HSBC raised Apple from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $260.00 to $366.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, China Renaissance cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $280.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $330.44.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of Apple stock opened at $309.46 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The company has a market cap of $4.52 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $309.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $282.24. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $202.16 and a fifty-two week high of $344.57.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 135.46%. The business’s revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.57 EPS. Analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 12.39%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total value of $369,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 38,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,226,770. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: India proposed extending tax exemptions for equipment suppliers to contract manufacturers through 2041. The policy could support Apple’s effort to expand iPhone production in India and reduce reliance on China. India proposes extending tax breaks for contract manufacturing in a boost for Apple
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and bullish investors argue that Apple’s capital-light AI strategy could eventually pay off through its enormous installed base, device upgrades and Services ecosystem, without the infrastructure spending burden faced by hyperscalers. Apple’s AI Strategy Looks Different—Will It Pay Off?
• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s acquisition of PlasmaSolve could improve manufacturing simulations, device coatings and production yields, potentially supporting thinner and stronger future hardware. AAPL Stock Alert: What to Know as Apple Acquires PlasmaSolve
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple asked a U.S. court to block OpenAI and two former employees from using alleged trade secrets. OpenAI has responded by calling the case careless and publishing private communications; the dispute could affect OpenAI’s hardware plans but remains legally unresolved. Apple seeks preliminary injunction against OpenAI in trade secrets case
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple is also challenging a U.K. demand for access to encrypted user data. A favorable outcome could protect its privacy positioning, while prolonged regulatory litigation creates uncertainty. Apple launches fresh legal challenge against UK encrypted data access demand
• Negative Sentiment: The strongest pressure remains financial: Apple exceeded quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, but its outlook was viewed as disappointing. Higher memory and component costs, supply constraints, a Services revenue miss and delayed Apple Intelligence features have undermined confidence in near-term growth.
• Negative Sentiment: China Renaissance, DZ Bank and Phillip Securities downgraded AAPL, citing persistent memory inflation, supply risks and uncertainty over Apple Intelligence returns. With the stock trading around 35 times earnings and a PEG ratio above 2.6, investors are demanding substantial growth to justify the valuation.
• Negative Sentiment: The CEO transition adds execution risk. While some coverage views Cook’s departure as a well-prepared succession, investors will watch whether John Ternus can accelerate AI development and sustain Apple’s growth momentum.

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.