Apple Inc. $AAPL Stock Holdings Increased by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,282,687 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after buying an additional 72,884 shares during the period. Apple comprises 5.5% of Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $9,630,678,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Griffith & Werner Inc. lifted its position in shares of Apple by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter. Griffith & Werner Inc. now owns 30,498 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $8,825,000 after acquiring an additional 2,069 shares during the period. Carmel Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC now owns 12,256 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $3,546,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 129,671 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $37,522,000 after acquiring an additional 6,820 shares during the period. Saiph Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 44.9% in the 2nd quarter. Saiph Capital LLC now owns 31,247 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $9,042,000 after acquiring an additional 9,676 shares during the period. Finally, Ethic Inc. increased its stake in Apple by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 1,616,480 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $467,745,000 after purchasing an additional 123,835 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,425,754.82. This trade represents a 0.30% 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 sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $317.01, for a total transaction of $456,177.39. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 35,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,345,787.90. This trade represents a 3.87% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 5,872 shares of company stock valued at $1,823,201. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s Sept. 9 product event is generating significant interest under new CEO John Ternus, with expectations for new iPhones, an Apple Watch update and potentially the company’s first foldable iPhone. Citi estimates the foldable device could sell 7.3 million units despite a possible price above $2,000. Citi foldable iPhone sales forecast
• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s latest quarter showed strong momentum, with revenue rising 16.4% year over year and earnings exceeding analyst expectations. Morgan Stanley has also suggested the foldable iPhone could contribute roughly $14 billion in December-quarter revenue if successfully launched. Morgan Stanley foldable iPhone estimate
• Neutral Sentiment: John Ternus has succeeded Tim Cook as CEO, while Cook remains executive chairman. The transition offers continuity through a longtime Apple executive but raises questions about whether Ternus can accelerate Apple’s artificial-intelligence strategy and sustain Cook-era growth. John Ternus becomes Apple CEO
• Negative Sentiment: Reports indicate initial foldable iPhone production was only a few hundred units per day in late August. Tight quality controls and memory shortages could limit launch supply, delay purchases and prevent Apple from fully capturing expected demand. Foldable iPhone production hurdles
• Negative Sentiment: Memory costs have reportedly surged, potentially forcing Apple to raise iPhone prices, absorb lower margins or risk weaker demand. Jefferies has also downgraded AAPL amid skepticism about the foldable product’s market potential. iPhone memory cost concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Apple faces a $2.7 billion UK lawsuit over alleged unfair app-tracking rules and a separate BASF patent lawsuit involving facial-authentication technology, adding regulatory and litigation risk. Apple UK app-tracking lawsuit

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $319.97 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $225.95 and a fifty-two week high of $344.57. The business has a fifty day moving average of $315.65 and a 200-day moving average of $290.34. The stock has a market cap of $4.67 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.08.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.57 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AAPL shares. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $375.00 price objective (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, May 14th. China Renaissance downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $280.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Apple from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $330.61.

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.