Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Sold by Paulson Wealth Management Inc.

Paulson Wealth Management Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 4.7% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 97,097 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 4,810 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 5.8% of Paulson Wealth Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Paulson Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $24,724,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Hollencrest Capital Management raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 1,050,675 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $267,533,000 after buying an additional 6,761 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Apple by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 202,992 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $51,688,000 after buying an additional 6,025 shares in the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in Apple in the third quarter valued at $302,000. AE Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Apple by 11.4% during the third quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,010,129 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $511,840,000 after acquiring an additional 206,188 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Archer Investment Corp raised its stake in Apple by 0.4% during the third quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 29,579 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $7,532,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Tim Cook teased a series of product launches next week (new iPhone, iPad, MacBook announcements), which typically lifts demand expectations and short‑term investor sentiment. Tim Cook Teases Apple Launch On Monday
• Positive Sentiment: Apple and Netflix agreed to co‑broadcast the Canadian Formula 1 Grand Prix on Apple TV and Netflix, a partnership that can boost Apple TV viewership and services engagement. Apple and Netflix team up to air Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix
• Positive Sentiment: Bloomberg/Reuters report Apple is in talks to launch Apple Pay in India — a multi‑hundred‑million‑user market that could materially grow services revenues over time. Apple talks with banks to start payment service in India
• Positive Sentiment: Apple moved to dismiss a proposed class action alleging it misled investors on Siri’s AI progress — if successful, this reduces a legal overhang. Apple seeks dismissal of fraud lawsuit over Siri AI
• Positive Sentiment: J.P. Morgan highlighted Apple’s potential to benefit from AI “companions” and Apple Intelligence initiatives, reinforcing the view that Apple can monetize AI through devices and services. AI Companions Could Make Apple Stock an AI Winner
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest data in recent filings appears anomalous/zero (likely reporting error), so it provides no clear directional signal.
• Neutral Sentiment: Heightened retail/institutional search and ETF coverage mention Apple as a core holding (Zacks, Vanguard ETF pieces), reflecting continued investor attention but not immediate directional impact. Investors Heavily Search Apple Inc. (AAPL)
• Neutral Sentiment: Advisors and funds continue to rebalance allocations (mentions of trades to balance Nvidia/Apple exposure), indicating portfolio flows but not a clear buy/sell signal. Advisor added to bond position to balance Nvidia and Apple holdings
• Negative Sentiment: OpenAI hired a high‑profile researcher who previously led Apple’s models team, underscoring talent competition in AI that could challenge Apple’s pace of AI product development. OpenAI hires Meta AI researcher who previously led Apple’s models team
• Negative Sentiment: Macro/market pressure: coverage on Magnificent Seven profit-taking and elevated Nasdaq stress gauges suggests sectorwide selling/volatility, which depresses large-cap tech stocks including AAPL. Stocks Are Set for a February Slide. Can the Magnificent 7 Spark a March Rebound?

Apple Price Performance

AAPL opened at $264.18 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.88 trillion, a P/E ratio of 33.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.09. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $264.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $259.41. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $288.62.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AAPL. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $239.00 target price (up from $230.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Apple from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 30th. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Apple from a “moderate sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 1st. Finally, Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, February 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $293.41.

Apple Company 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.