Altshuler Shaham Ltd Acquires 368,606 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Altshuler Shaham Ltd. increased its Apple stake by 165.2% in the first quarter, acquiring 368,606 shares for a total holding of 591,698 shares valued at approximately $150.2 million.
• Apple reported strong quarterly results, with revenue up 16.4% year over year to $109.42 billion and earnings of $2.02 per share, surpassing analyst estimates.
• Apple declared a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $328.60; concerns include premium valuation, memory-cost pressures and uncertain AI momentum.

Altshuler Shaham Ltd increased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 165.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 591,698 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 368,606 shares during the period. Apple makes up about 2.4% of Altshuler Shaham Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Altshuler Shaham Ltd's holdings in Apple were worth $150,167,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Apple by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $387,749,545,000 after buying an additional 26,856,752 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Apple by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 604,056,505 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $164,218,801,000 after acquiring an additional 6,555,392 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 358,032,517 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $97,031,587,000 after acquiring an additional 1,866,103 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 230,483,035 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $62,659,118,000 after acquiring an additional 1,379,651 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth $52,266,468,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $302.25 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $4.41 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $223.78 and a twelve month high of $344.57. The company's 50-day moving average price is $309.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $284.64.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 135.46%. The business's revenue was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.57 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.39%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the transaction, the insider owned 38,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple is testing DRAM chips from China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) for iPhones and MacBooks and has discussed potential supply arrangements. Diversifying memory suppliers could reduce shortages and limit cost pressure, although geopolitical and quality-control risks remain. Apple’s CXMT Bet Could Strengthen Its Memory Supply, But Risks Remain
• Positive Sentiment: Apple is reportedly in talks with publishers to license content for an AI-powered Siri. Access to current, high-quality information could improve Siri as Apple prepares a major AI-focused iPhone software update. Apple in Talks to Pay Publishers to Improve AI-Powered Siri
• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s latest quarter remained strong, with revenue up 16.4% year over year and earnings exceeding consensus estimates. Some investors also view the recent pullback as an accumulation opportunity, while Crake Asset Management reportedly increased its Apple position.
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple hired former American Airlines executive Nate Gatten to lead government affairs, highlighting the importance of tariffs, regulation and White House relations. The appointment could improve policy execution but also underscores heightened political risk. Apple Hires Former American Airlines Executive to Lead Government Affairs
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Tim Cook is expected to hand leadership to John Ternus on September 1, while Apple Pay and Wallet chief Jennifer Bailey plans to retire in October. The transitions create execution uncertainty but may also mark a planned leadership refresh.
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies cut its Apple rating and price target, questioning whether the company has sufficient iPhone and AI momentum to justify its premium valuation. The firm also cited supply-chain concerns about a high-end all-glass iPhone and weaker average-selling-price growth. Apple Stock Falls After Jefferies Slashes Price Target
• Negative Sentiment: Memory shortages driven by AI demand are raising Apple’s bill of materials and could pressure margins or force additional iPhone price increases. Google’s new Pixel 11 lineup also intensifies competition in AI-enabled smartphones. Apple additionally faces a class-action lawsuit alleging that its iCloud+ privacy claims misled consumers.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on AAPL shares. Tigress Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and set a $375.00 target price (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price target on shares of Apple from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $365.00 price target (up from $315.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, July 13th. China Renaissance cut Apple from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $280.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $245.00 target price (down from $253.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $328.60.

Apple Company Profile

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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