40,581 Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Bought by Bernardo Wealth Planning LLC

Bernardo Wealth Planning LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 97.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 82,330 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 40,581 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 2.3% of Bernardo Wealth Planning LLC's holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Bernardo Wealth Planning LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $27,418,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Avenir Tech Ltd acquired a new position in Apple during the second quarter worth $29,000. Ironwood Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Apple during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the second quarter worth about $30,000. ABS Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the second quarter worth about $376,168,000. Finally, Bamco Inc. NY acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the second quarter worth about $118,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Investors following AAPL have been watching these headlines:

• Positive Sentiment: China Renaissance upgraded Apple to Buy and set a $425 price target, pointing to potential from a future foldable iPhone and interest in the company’s product lineup. Recent quarterly results also beat earnings and revenue estimates, with revenue up year over year. China Renaissance’s view on Apple
• Neutral Sentiment: HomeView is not launching in the EU because Siri AI is unavailable there, and early coverage has questioned Siri’s readiness. This could constrain the device’s initial reach and reception. HomeView launch coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation remains a key risk: analysts have warned Apple trades at a premium, and views are divided, including a DZ Bank downgrade to Sell. A senior vice president also continued a pattern of scheduled share sales, a modest potential overhang. Apple valuation analysis

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on AAPL. Guggenheim set a $400.00 price target on Apple in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Apple from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed an "underperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $347.11.

Apple Stock Performance

Apple stock traded up $1.39 on Friday, reaching $356.27. 39,967,159 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 48,203,272. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $243.42 and a twelve month high of $360.83. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $339.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $301.05. The stock has a market cap of $5.18 trillion, a PE ratio of 39.72, a PEG ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 1.07.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $2.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $114.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $113.40 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 125.35% and a net margin of 27.60%. The firm's revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.85 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 9.45 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 12th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is presently 12.04%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $842,912.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 27,598 shares in the company, valued at $9,696,833.28. The trade was a 8.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,392 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.05, for a total value of $480,309.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 17,539 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,051,831.95. This represents a 7.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 292,611 shares of company stock worth $97,482,597 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Company Profile

Apple Inc. designs, manufactures and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its products include the iPhone, Mac computers, iPad, Apple Watch and AirPods, along with operating systems and applications such as iOS, macOS and iPadOS. The company also offers services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, iCloud and Apple Pay. These products and services are integrated across Apple's devices and are sold to consumers, businesses and institutions around the world. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Cupertino, California, Apple serves customers globally through online and retail stores, wireless carriers and other resellers.

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