AE Wealth Management LLC Has $584.73 Million Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• AE Wealth Management LLC increased its Apple stake by 7.0% in the fourth quarter, holding 2,150,834 shares worth about $584.7 million. Apple is now the firm’s largest position, making up roughly 3.4% of its portfolio.
• Apple reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $2.01 beating estimates and revenue of $111.18 billion also topping expectations. Revenue rose 16.6% year over year, and analysts now expect $8.74 EPS for the full fiscal year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.27 per share, up from $0.26, payable May 14 to shareholders of record on May 11. Meanwhile, insider selling continued, including notable sales by the SVP and CFO.

AE Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 7.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,150,834 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 140,705 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 3.4% of AE Wealth Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its largest position. AE Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $584,726,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Apple in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,942,255,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 1st quarter valued at $17,472,482,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 20,464.8% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27,069,029 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $5,553,753,000 after buying an additional 26,937,401 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Apple by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $42,918,365,000 after buying an additional 20,079,472 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 104,706,358 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $26,220,566,000 after purchasing an additional 13,137,968 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total transaction of $7,661,010.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 136,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,934,433.50. This trade represents a 17.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $421,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,675,650. The trade was a 10.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 96,485 shares of company stock worth $24,594,845 over the last 90 days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Apple Trading Down 0.2%

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $292.68 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $193.46 and a 52 week high of $294.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.30 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.39, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.06. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $262.63 and a 200 day moving average of $266.47.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.65 EPS. Apple's revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.58%.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s latest earnings showed record-like strength, with revenue and EPS beating estimates and iPhone sales surging, reinforcing confidence in the company’s core business and margin profile.
• Positive Sentiment: Apple is being viewed more favorably on AI and product innovation, with analysts and commentators highlighting a coming WWDC catalyst, deeper AI integration, and potential new growth from wearables, Vision products, and smart glasses.
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple may use Intel for some chip production could be seen as strategically positive because it reduces reliance on a single supplier and may improve long-term supply-chain resilience. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s pricing power remains intact, as it reportedly raised the Mac mini’s starting price while still seeing strong demand and backorders, suggesting healthy interest in its hardware lineup.
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple will pay its quarterly dividend today, which supports the stock’s income appeal but is not likely a major near-term share-price driver.
• Negative Sentiment: Director Arthur Levinson’s $71 million stock sale may temper enthusiasm a bit, since insider selling near highs can signal management caution or profit-taking.
• Negative Sentiment: Some coverage warns that Apple’s stock may be getting stretched after its run-up, and rising component costs could pressure future margins if consumer hardware pricing becomes harder to manage.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on AAPL shares. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on shares of Apple from $268.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Apple from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, February 1st. UBS Group set a $296.00 price target on shares of Apple and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $330.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp reaffirmed a "sector weight" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $305.74.

About Apple

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.

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