Vericrest Private Wealth Purchases New Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Vericrest Private Wealth purchased a new position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 24,480 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock, valued at approximately $6,655,000. Apple makes up 5.9% of Vericrest Private Wealth’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Winthrop Partners WNY LLC acquired a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth about $8,194,000. Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $3,181,000. Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $15,995,000. DUTCH ASSET Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $1,972,000. Finally, Larry Mathis Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $475,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Down 0.7%

AAPL stock opened at $294.98 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $4.33 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.67, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $199.26 and a twelve month high of $317.40. The company’s 50 day moving average is $291.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $273.06.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. The business had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.65 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect 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 was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a $0.27 dividend. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 13.06%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other 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 transaction of $421,850.00. Following the sale, 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. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the business’s 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 directly owned 3,280,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $833,980,668.14. The trade was a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 97,875 shares of company stock worth $24,998,541. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street is becoming more optimistic about Apple’s new Siri and AI strategy after the post-WWDC selloff, suggesting investors may be overreacting to near-term skepticism. After an Initial Panic, Wall Street’s Leaning Into Apple’s New Siri AI
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple has agreed to partner with Intel to design and manufacture chips in the U.S. are being viewed as a supply-chain diversification win and a long-term catalyst for Apple’s hardware roadmap. Apple’s Intel Deal Arrives at the Right Time for Its Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Tim Cook’s comments about higher memory costs and upcoming price increases are being interpreted by some analysts as supportive of Apple’s earnings power, since price hikes could help offset component inflation. Apple: Empirical Evidence Suggests Upcoming Price Hikes Will Boost Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s TV and streaming strategy is drawing attention, but the discussion appears more explanatory than immediately material to the stock. Apple Explains TV Library Strategy
• Neutral Sentiment: A Zacks comparison of NVIDIA and Apple highlights Apple’s lower valuation and services strength, reinforcing the stock’s defensive appeal without changing the near-term setup. NVIDIA vs. Apple: Which Tech Titan Is the Better Buy Right Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Britain’s competition tribunal approved a £3 billion class action over iCloud fees, adding a meaningful legal overhang and potential financial liability for Apple. UK tribunal gives go ahead for $4 billion lawsuit against Apple over iCloud services
• Negative Sentiment: Apple also faces reputational risk after closing its first unionized U.S. store, with the union accusing the company of retaliation. Apple Just Closed Its First Unionized U.S. Store
• Negative Sentiment: Several reports say Apple is forcing price increases on hardware because memory and chip costs are rising, which could pressure demand if consumers push back. Memory’s price surge threatens Apple’s ‘magic formula’ — and the economy

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAPL has been the subject of several research reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price target on shares of Apple from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Apple from $335.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Robert W. Baird set a $310.00 price target on Apple in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $325.00 price target on Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $314.85.

Apple 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.