Apple Inc. $AAPL Position Lowered by Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. trimmed its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 9.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,239,057 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 240,306 shares during the period. Apple accounts for approximately 4.2% of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.’s holdings in Apple were worth $609,312,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Isthmus Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 97,177 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 5,808 shares in the last quarter. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Apple by 110.9% in the third quarter. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC increased its stake in Apple by 1,800.0% in the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Finally, Timmons Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $69,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total transaction of $16,511,984.27. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,280,418 shares in the company, valued at $833,980,668.14. The trade was a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total value of $34,236.24. Following the transaction, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 97,875 shares of company stock valued at $24,998,541 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $295.95 on Thursday. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $195.07 and a 1-year high of $317.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market cap of $4.35 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $288.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $272.66.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. The business had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.65 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.75 EPS for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley set a $325.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $310.00 price target (up from $300.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Apple from $335.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $310.00 target price on Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $314.59.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple is reportedly preparing a second-generation iPhone Air for spring 2027, with upgrades including a second rear camera and better battery life, reinforcing the company’s longer-term product pipeline. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts reiterated bullish views after WWDC, arguing Apple’s AI strategy, ecosystem integration, and premium-services monetization could support further upside in AAPL. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: One report said Apple is well positioned to navigate the AI memory crunch because it built up inventory, which could help protect margins versus rivals facing the same component shortage. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple insider Ben Borders sold a small number of shares, but the filing says the sale was mainly to cover tax withholding tied to equity vesting, making it less concerning for investors. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Tim Cook said price hikes across Apple’s lineup are “unavoidable” because AI-driven demand is pushing up memory and storage chip costs, raising concerns about margin pressure and possible consumer backlash. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain frustrated with Apple’s slower-than-expected AI rollout, and some coverage says the company still has to prove tangible progress after WWDC rather than just promise future updates. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Italy opened a Digital Markets Act probe into Apple’s cloud interoperability practices, adding a new regulatory overhang in Europe. Article Title

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.