1,047,420 Shares in Apple Inc. $AAPL Bought by Equitable Holdings Inc.

Key Points

• Equitable Holdings purchased 1,047,420 Apple shares worth approximately $303.1 million in the second quarter, making Apple its 11th-largest holding and representing about 1.8% of its portfolio. Other institutional investors also initiated Apple positions, while institutions and hedge funds collectively own 67.73% of the stock.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with Apple carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $340.14. The company recently exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $2.02 in EPS and $109.42 billion in revenue.
• Apple faces mixed developments: its Qualcomm patent agreement and planned investment in next-generation chips are supportive, but a potential $5.7 billion patent award and revived competition and consumer lawsuits add legal and regulatory risks.

Equitable Holdings Inc. bought a new position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 1,047,420 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $303,082,000. Apple accounts for about 1.8% of Equitable Holdings Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Centaurus Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $59,517,000. Reality Financial Planning Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the second quarter worth $392,000. Larch Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the second quarter worth $335,000. Brasada Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the second quarter valued at $5,324,000. Finally, FSA Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,344,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on AAPL shares. Seaport Research Partners downgraded Apple from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. Phillip Securities upped their price target on shares of Apple from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $360.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, September 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Apple presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $340.14.

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.06, for a total transaction of $815,803.94. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 44,391 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,095,603.46. This trade represents a 5.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 11,031 shares of company stock worth $3,535,759 over the last quarter. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $338.40 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.94 trillion, a P/E ratio of 38.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.08. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.42 and a 1 year high of $345.34. The company's fifty day moving average is $321.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $298.18. 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 (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%.The company had revenue of $109.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.57 earnings per share. Apple's quarterly revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.39%.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s renewed patent agreement with Qualcomm helps preserve access to important cellular technology and reduces uncertainty surrounding future iPhone launches. The deal also supports Qualcomm’s royalty stream tied to Apple devices. What Is Going on With Qualcomm Stock on Monday?
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple is increasing orders for TSMC’s next-generation 2-nanometer chips point to continued investment in more powerful and efficient processors for future iPhones and other products. TSMC Ramps Up 2nm Chip Capacity as Apple, Nvidia Orders Jump
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s foldable iPhone Duo and premium-device strategy could lift revenue and expand its addressable market, but the roughly $2,000 price raises questions about demand beyond affluent early adopters. Apple’s Premium iPhone Strategy Faces a Test Beyond Early Adopters
• Neutral Sentiment: X Corp. and SpaceXAI reportedly moved to dismiss antitrust claims against Apple and OpenAI, removing one legal challenge, although other regulatory matters remain unresolved. Musk’s X Corp and SpaceXAI Drop Apple From AI Antitrust Fight
• Negative Sentiment: A U.S. jury ordered Apple to pay approximately $5.7 billion to Taction Technology for infringing patents covering haptic feedback used in products such as the iPhone and Apple Watch. Apple denies wrongdoing and plans to appeal, but the potential liability is the largest U.S. patent award of its kind. Apple and Amazon Face Revived UK Consumer Lawsuit Over Product Sales
• Negative Sentiment: Britain’s Competition Appeal Tribunal revived part of a consumer case alleging that Apple and Amazon restricted competition for Apple products sold through Amazon’s U.K. marketplace. Apple also faces an expanded Indian investigation into alleged costly repairs following an iOS 18 software update, increasing potential legal and reputational risk. Apple and Amazon Face Revived UK Consumer Lawsuit Over Product Sales

About Apple

Apple Inc is a technology company that designs, develops and markets 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 software platforms, including iOS, macOS, iPadOS, watchOS and visionOS.

Apple's services business includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, Apple Fitness+ and iCloud.

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