Apple Inc. $AAPL Stock: New England Research & Management Inc. Grows Holdings

New England Research & Management Inc. lifted its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,774 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after buying an additional 3,135 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 5.6% of New England Research & Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. New England Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $14,751,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the 2nd quarter worth $65,950,297,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Apple in the second quarter worth $36,986,090,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in shares of Apple in the second quarter worth $30,443,242,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in Apple in the second quarter valued at about $13,658,359,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Apple in the second quarter valued at about $10,588,946,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, August 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. China Renaissance downgraded shares of Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $329.00 to $280.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners downgraded shares of Apple from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $340.49.

Apple Price Performance

Apple stock opened at $344.63 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.00. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.42 and a 52 week high of $351.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.03 trillion, a P/E ratio of 39.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $333.04 and a 200-day moving average of $296.38.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.13. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%. The business had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.04 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.57 earnings per share. Apple’s revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple acquired Ascension Labs, which operates as Ascend.io, gaining access to agentic artificial-intelligence talent and intellectual property. The deal supports Apple’s effort to strengthen its AI capabilities, although financial terms were not disclosed. Apple Acquires AI Firm Ascend.io Talent and Patents
• Positive Sentiment: Demand indicators remain supportive: the foldable iPhone Duo reportedly sold out quickly, orders are backed up, and Apple is positioned to benefit from strong iPhone, Mac and Services demand. Analysts including Bank of America and Goldman Sachs remain constructive, with BofA reiterating a Buy rating and a $370 price target. Analyst Reiterates Buy on Apple
• Positive Sentiment: The first touchscreen MacBook Pro, equipped with OLED displays and M5 Pro or M5 Max chips, expands Apple’s premium hardware lineup and could support a new product-cycle catalyst. Apple Shows First Touchscreen Laptops
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s earnings report is the immediate focus. Investors will look for evidence that revenue growth, Services momentum and AI investments can offset rising component costs and potentially slower holiday growth. Options activity suggests substantial volatility around the release. Apple November 2 Earnings Preview
• Negative Sentiment: AI-related demand has sharply increased flash-memory prices, raising concerns that Apple’s gross margin will come under pressure. Qualcomm also indicated that Apple-related revenue is declining faster than previously expected, reinforcing concerns about the pace of future iPhone growth. AI Has Made Flash Memory More Expensive
• Negative Sentiment: At roughly 40 times earnings and near its yearly high, Apple has limited room for an earnings or guidance disappointment. A senior vice president’s repeated stock sales and a South Korean fine related to app-market practices add modest additional caution. Apple Insider Selling

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Timothy D. Cook sold 191,753 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.96, for a total value of $63,846,078.88. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 3,264,168 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,086,837,377.28. This trade represents a 5.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 46,389 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.42, for a total transaction of $15,467,020.38. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,810 shares in the company, valued at $45,615,190.20. This trade represents a 25.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 289,252 shares of company stock worth $96,301,063 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Company Profile

Apple Inc designs, develops and sells consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its best-known products include the iPhone smartphone, Mac personal computers, iPad tablets, Apple Watch, AirPods and other accessories. The company also develops operating systems and applications that support its hardware ecosystem.

Apple’s services business includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV, Apple Arcade, iCloud, Apple Pay and other subscription, payment and digital-content offerings.