WealthTrust Asset Management LLC Sells 1,615 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

WealthTrust Asset Management LLC lowered its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 15.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,697 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 1,615 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for about 1.7% of WealthTrust Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. WealthTrust Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $2,364,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. First National Bank of Hutchinson raised its stake in shares of Apple by 24.6% in the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $8,845,000 after purchasing an additional 6,982 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $13,544,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $134,554,000 after purchasing an additional 69,207 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,857 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $16,742,000 after purchasing an additional 2,695 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE lifted its holdings in Apple by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 50,264 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $12,587,000 after purchasing an additional 1,155 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was 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 directly owned 3,280,418 shares in the company, valued at $833,980,668.14. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $421,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 13,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,675,650. The trade was a 10.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 97,759 shares of company stock valued at $24,964,305 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $365.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $330.00 price target on Apple in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $375.00 price target (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $335.00 price objective (up from $325.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $312.82.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL opened at $310.26 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.56 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.09. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $279.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $270.84. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $195.07 and a one year high of $316.94.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. Apple’s revenue was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.65 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors 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. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.06%.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Investors are betting WWDC will showcase major AI upgrades, especially a rebuilt Siri powered by Google’s Gemini models and new iOS payment features that could deepen Apple’s ecosystem and services revenue. Apple’s Gemini-Powered Siri and iOS Payments Push
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive on Apple’s AI roadmap and ecosystem strength, with Goldman Sachs reaffirming a Buy rating and a $340 price target, while Evercore raised its target to $365. Apple Buy Rating Reaffirmed
• Positive Sentiment: Recent commentary highlights Apple stock’s strong run, including reports that it has outperformed the S&P 500 this year and surged in May on enthusiasm for Apple Intelligence. Why Apple Stock Soared 15% in May
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple is shifting its mixed-reality strategy toward smart glasses suggest management is re-prioritizing a potentially larger consumer hardware opportunity. Apple to Scrap Vision Pro Successor and Focus on Smart Glasses
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple faces continued competitive pressure from Nvidia’s push into AI PCs and from Walmart’s expanding OnePay payments app, both of which could intensify rivalry in devices and payments. Nvidia takes AI battle from the data centre to the laptop
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro sentiment was softer Wednesday, with major indexes down, but the move was broad-based and not specific to Apple. Review & Preview: Down Day
• Negative Sentiment: Apple also continues to face regulatory overhang, including Reuters reporting that it agreed to submit India financials in a long-running antitrust case, which could raise the risk of penalties. Apple agrees to submit India financials in long-pending antitrust case

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.