DGS Capital Management LLC Buys 5,323 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

DGS Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 69,693 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after buying an additional 5,323 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 3.2% of DGS Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. DGS Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $18,947,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,266,468,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Apple in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $17,472,482,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. increased its stake in Apple by 890.7% in the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 41,984,810 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $11,413,990,000 after purchasing an additional 37,746,784 shares in the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 20,464.8% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27,069,029 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $5,553,753,000 after purchasing an additional 26,937,401 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Apple by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $387,749,545,000 after purchasing an additional 26,856,752 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total transaction of $16,511,984.27. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $833,980,668.14. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 97,875 shares of company stock valued at $24,998,541 over the last quarter. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s planned price increases could protect margins as memory and storage costs rise, and Bank of America reiterated a Buy rating with a $380 target, citing Apple’s pricing power and supply-chain strength. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Reports of upcoming AI-focused devices and a second-generation iPhone Air support confidence in Apple’s product pipeline and longer-term growth story. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s planned price hikes may help earnings, but they could also pressure demand if consumers balk at higher handset prices. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple opening Brazil’s App Store to alternative marketplaces reduces regulatory friction there, but it also underscores ongoing global platform scrutiny. Article Title

Apple Stock Performance

Apple stock opened at $298.01 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $289.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $272.98. The company has a market capitalization of $4.38 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.04, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.09. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.85 and a fifty-two week high of $317.40.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.The company had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.65 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on AAPL shares. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, June 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $325.00 price target on Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Maxim Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $350.00 price objective (up from $310.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $314.59.

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.