Momentum Wealth Planning LLC Decreases Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Momentum Wealth Planning LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 81.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,061 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 13,382 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 0.7% of Momentum Wealth Planning LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Momentum Wealth Planning LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $777,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. SEB Asset Management AB acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the first quarter valued at about $1,265,497,000. Swiss National Bank boosted its position in Apple by 6.1% during the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 43,134,968 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $10,947,224,000 after acquiring an additional 2,467,900 shares during the last quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. acquired a new position in Apple during the first quarter worth about $1,427,000. AIA Group Ltd grew its stake in Apple by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 457,049 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $115,994,000 after acquiring an additional 25,068 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Apple by 24.6% during the 1st quarter. Legacy Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 22,483 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $5,706,000 after acquiring an additional 4,445 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: India proposed extending tax exemptions through 2041 for foreign companies supplying equipment to contract manufacturers. The policy could lower Apple’s manufacturing costs and support its strategy of shifting more iPhone production to India. India proposes extending tax breaks for contract manufacturing in a boost for Apple
• Positive Sentiment: Apple continues to generate substantial free cash flow, with analysts expecting strong cash generation to continue alongside higher revenue forecasts. This supports shareholder returns and provides financial flexibility, although the stock’s valuation limits the upside case. Apple Delivers Strong Free Cash Flow, But What is the Best AAPL Play?
• Positive Sentiment: A reported deal with PlasmaSolve could help Apple develop thinner, stronger device finishes by using software simulations before factory testing, potentially improving manufacturing yields and reducing testing costs. Apple Stock Drops as PlasmaSolve Deal Targets Thinner and Stronger Devices

Apple Stock Performance

Apple stock opened at $303.42 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $309.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $281.90. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $201.68 and a 1-year high of $344.57. 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 stock has a market cap of $4.46 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.09.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $109.42 billion during 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 last year, the firm earned $1.57 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.8 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.39%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of Apple stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Maxim Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $350.00 target price (up from $310.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Tigress Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $375.00 price target (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Apple from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Apple from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Apple from $364.00 to $360.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $331.60.

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.