Clearline Capital LP Invests $11.46 Million in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Clearline Capital LP purchased a new stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 45,000 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock, valued at approximately $11,458,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Apple by 1.1% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,415,932,804 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $290,506,933,000 after acquiring an additional 15,141,995 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Apple by 0.9% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 601,249,995 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $123,358,461,000 after purchasing an additional 5,224,229 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 354,749,794 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $72,506,336,000 after purchasing an additional 4,942,638 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,942,255,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Apple by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $42,918,365,000 after purchasing an additional 20,079,472 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their target price on Apple from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $350.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $325.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, February 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $297.58.

Apple Stock Down 2.2%

AAPL stock opened at $250.12 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The company’s 50 day moving average is $262.08 and its 200 day moving average is $261.52. The stock has a market cap of $3.67 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.10. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $288.62.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.17. Apple had a net margin of 27.04% and a return on equity of 159.94%. The business had revenue of $143.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $138.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.40 earnings per share. Apple’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s new low-cost devices (MacBook Neo, iPhone 17e) broaden addressable market and could win share versus cheaper Windows/Chromebooks — a strategic growth lever even if it pressures near-term margins. How Apple’s new low-cost MacBook Neo may shake up the market
• Positive Sentiment: Early Formula 1 ratings for AppleTV’s exclusive U.S. stream were strong, supporting the thesis that exclusive sports/content deals can grow Services subscriptions and engagement over time. Apple Gets Early Formula 1 Ratings Win
• Positive Sentiment: India’s plan to roll fresh smartphone manufacturing incentives could help Apple expand local production and improve margin/market access over the medium term. India plans fresh incentives for phone production
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views are mixed: a few firms raised targets or reiterated buys while others stay cautious/neutral; median price targets remain above the market, keeping a longer-term bullish backdrop but no unanimous near-term catalyst. Apple Stock Opinions on Tech Sector Pullback
• Negative Sentiment: Apple cut its mainland China App Store commission to 25% (and mini-app fees to 12%) after regulator talks — good for developer relations but a direct hit to Services take-rate and near-term revenue in its second‑largest market. Apple cuts China App Store commission fees after government pressure
• Negative Sentiment: Strong insider selling and social/board chatter about a tech pullback and China demand risks are weighing on sentiment — traders are highlighting technical weakness and short-term bearish views. Apple Stock Opinions on Tech Sector Pullback
• Negative Sentiment: Macro and supply‑chain risks (memory/storage cost inflation and geopolitical disruption tied to the Iran war) could raise component costs and compress device margins if Apple absorbs price moves to hold consumer prices. The Iran War Could Upend AI. Here’s How.

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.