Forbes J M & Co. LLP Purchases 2,225 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Forbes J M & Co. LLP boosted its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 248,512 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,225 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 5.3% of Forbes J M & Co. LLP’s holdings, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Forbes J M & Co. LLP’s holdings in Apple were worth $63,070,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. raised its stake in 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 in the last quarter. WESPAC Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. WESPAC Advisors LLC now owns 12,326 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $3,351,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Interactive Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Interactive Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,051 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $286,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Orion Investment Co grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Orion Investment Co now owns 14,354 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $3,902,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Seven Springs Wealth Group LLC increased its position in Apple by 0.3% during 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 in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts say the price hikes could help Apple protect margins by passing through rising component costs, and long-term bulls still view the company as financially strong. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s AI strategy remains a work in progress, with some coverage saying the company’s AI upgrade likely will not be a major near-term catalyst for the stock. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Apple’s decision to raise Mac and iPad prices has sparked concern about weaker demand and “demand friction,” especially if consumers push back on higher-priced devices. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market weakness and a tech selloff added pressure, with Apple leading the downside among major technology names. Article Title

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total value of $34,236.24. Following the sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 30,002 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total value of $7,661,010.70. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,934,433.50. The trade was a 17.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 97,875 shares of company stock valued at $24,998,541. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, June 8th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $310.00 target price on Apple in a report on Friday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $314.85.

Apple Trading Down 6.1%

AAPL opened at $275.15 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $199.26 and a fifty-two week high of $317.40. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $292.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $273.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.04 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.27, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.09.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

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

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.