Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC Sells 4,414 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC decreased its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 362,974 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 4,414 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 4.1% of Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $98,678,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. lifted its position in Apple by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. now owns 68,912 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $18,734,000 after buying an additional 536 shares during the last quarter. Traphagen Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Apple by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Traphagen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 138,524 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $37,659,000 after purchasing an additional 2,095 shares during the period. Security Financial Services INC. increased its stake in Apple by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Security Financial Services INC. now owns 43,739 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $11,891,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $391,000. Finally, Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in Apple by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. now owns 142,375 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $38,706,000 after purchasing an additional 923 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Maxim Group upgraded shares of Apple from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Phillip Securities raised Apple from a “moderate sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 1st. BNP Paribas Exane raised Apple from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, April 17th. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $305.74.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $421,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,366 shares in the company, valued at $3,675,650. The trade was a 10.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total value of $16,511,984.27. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $833,980,668.14. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 97,759 shares of company stock worth $24,964,305 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $298.87 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $4.39 trillion, a P/E ratio of 36.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.06. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $263.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $267.00. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $193.46 and a fifty-two week high of $300.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.46 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.65 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis 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 13.06%.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple is reportedly preparing major iPhone software changes, including a more customizable Camera app, a rebuilt Siri, and broader interface updates, which investors view as a sign the company is sharpening its product roadmap ahead of future iPhone and WWDC-related announcements. Apple Stock Is Gaining Today: What’s Happening Behind The Scenes?
• Positive Sentiment: Apple is being helped by rising AI optimism, with commentary highlighting strong iPhone demand, solid Services performance, and potential AI partnerships such as Google Gemini, all of which support the case for continued upside. Ca$htag$: AAPL Hits Record High as AI Optimism Grows
• Positive Sentiment: Apple is also getting support from reports that WWDC could be a major catalyst if it resets the market’s AI expectations and strengthens confidence in future software and ecosystem growth. The Event That Could Redefine Apple’s Summer Rally
• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s efforts to expand the App Store for autonomous AI agents suggest the company is trying to capture more of the next wave of AI-powered software while maintaining its security standards. Apple Prepares App Store for Autonomous AI Agents
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s participation in U.S.-China diplomatic and business discussions could matter for supply-chain and market-access issues, but the near-term financial impact is still uncertain. Trump Arrives in Beijing for High-Stakes Xi Summit Focused on Trade, AI, and Iran
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports that Apple is opposing EU AI-related measures and arguing they could hurt privacy and security are more about regulatory positioning than an immediate earnings driver. Apple criticises EU measures to help AI rivals access Google services
• Negative Sentiment: Fresh tariff headlines could keep pressure on Apple’s hardware costs and supply chain if higher import duties remain in place for longer. Appeals Court Temporarily Reinstates Trump’s 10% Global Tariffs
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider selling, including a modest sale by Ben Borders, may slightly temper sentiment, though it is small relative to Apple’s size and the broader bullish backdrop. SEC insider filing

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.