376,892 Shares in Apple Inc. $AAPL Acquired by Plato Investment Management Ltd

Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 376,892 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $108,421,000. Apple makes up 6.2% of Plato Investment Management Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AAPL. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Apple by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $387,749,545,000 after purchasing an additional 26,856,752 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 75,000,920 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $20,389,750,000 after purchasing an additional 2,725,121 shares during the last quarter. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Apple by 23.2% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 73,082,616 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $18,547,637,000 after purchasing an additional 13,780,080 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Apple by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 58,554,032 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $14,858,200,000 after buying an additional 979,832 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 55,146,752 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $14,992,196,000 after acquiring an additional 704,293 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In related news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares of Apple 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 35,790 shares in the company, valued at $11,345,787.90. The trade was a 3.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 7,194 shares of company stock worth $2,245,142. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, August 17th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating and issued a $400.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. Arete Research upped their price objective on Apple from $305.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Apple from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $338.80.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s new iPhone Duo foldable is generating significant investor interest. Analysts and commentators including Jim Cramer and Gary Black believe demand could be substantial, while some coverage suggests the device could expand Apple’s addressable market and support a longer-term upgrade cycle. Jim Cramer on Apple foldable demand
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts remain bullish. Bank of America reiterated a Buy rating with a $370 price target, JPMorgan reaffirmed its Buy rating, and Morgan Stanley reportedly increased its conviction as Apple’s hardware and AI offerings become more compelling. Bank of America Apple rating
• Positive Sentiment: Apple had a record Emmy performance, taking home the most awards and strengthening Apple TV+’s position in streaming. The recognition could support customer engagement and Apple’s services strategy, although the direct financial effect is difficult to quantify. Apple Emmy coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Early iPhone 18 Pro delivery times are shorter than last year’s, producing mixed interpretations: they may indicate softer demand, or consumers may be waiting for the foldable Duo. Apple’s stock is also roughly 4% below its recent high, limiting the margin for disappointment.
• Negative Sentiment: Reports describe iPhone 18 Pro demand as lukewarm, with shorter lead times and some indications of surprisingly weak preorders. Investors are concerned that the standard premium iPhone cycle may not justify Apple’s valuation. Apple iPhone 18 Pro demand
• Negative Sentiment: The redesigned Siri is launching under a beta label with language, regional, device and waitlist restrictions. Reported usage caps and response times of five to 15 seconds could delay the expected AI-driven upgrade cycle. Apple Siri AI rollout
• Negative Sentiment: India’s consumer regulator escalated an investigation into Apple’s software warranty terms and repair costs, creating potential regulatory, reputational and financial risk in an important growth market. India investigation into Apple

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL opened at $331.34 on Wednesday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $319.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $293.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market cap of $4.84 trillion, a P/E ratio of 38.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.08. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $236.32 and a 1-year high of $344.57.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 company had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.57 earnings per share. Apple's revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis 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 12.39%.

About Apple

Apple Inc is a technology company that designs, develops and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its principal products include the iPhone, Mac computers, iPad tablets, Apple Watch, AirPods and other accessories. The company also develops operating systems and applications that support its hardware products.

Apple's services business includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV, Apple Arcade, Apple Fitness+, Apple News+, Apple Pay and iCloud. These services provide digital content, payments, cloud storage and subscription offerings across the company's ecosystem of devices.

Founded in 1976, Apple is headquartered in Cupertino, California, and serves consumers, businesses, educational institutions and government customers worldwide.

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