AMG Asset Management Group Inc. Acquires New Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• AMG Asset Management Group initiated a new position in Apple during the fourth quarter, buying 5,021 shares valued at about $1.365 million. Apple now represents roughly 4.4% of the firm’s portfolio and is its 8th-largest holding.
• Apple continues to attract heavy institutional interest, with several other hedge funds and asset managers also adding or increasing positions. Overall, 67.73% of Apple’s stock is held by institutional investors.
• Apple’s latest fundamentals remain strong: the company beat quarterly earnings expectations, raised its dividend to $0.27 per share, and analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $314.85.

AMG Asset Management Group Inc. acquired a new position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 5,021 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $1,365,000. Apple accounts for approximately 4.4% of AMG Asset Management Group Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. Isthmus Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 97,177 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 5,808 shares during the last quarter. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% in the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Finally, Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $69,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street is becoming more optimistic about Apple’s new Siri and AI strategy after the post-WWDC selloff, suggesting investors may be overreacting to near-term skepticism. After an Initial Panic, Wall Street's Leaning Into Apple's New Siri AI
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple has agreed to partner with Intel to design and manufacture chips in the U.S. are being viewed as a supply-chain diversification win and a long-term catalyst for Apple’s hardware roadmap. Apple’s Intel Deal Arrives at the Right Time for Its Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Tim Cook’s comments about higher memory costs and upcoming price increases are being interpreted by some analysts as supportive of Apple’s earnings power, since price hikes could help offset component inflation. Apple: Empirical Evidence Suggests Upcoming Price Hikes Will Boost Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s TV and streaming strategy is drawing attention, but the discussion appears more explanatory than immediately material to the stock. Apple Explains TV Library Strategy
• Neutral Sentiment: A Zacks comparison of NVIDIA and Apple highlights Apple’s lower valuation and services strength, reinforcing the stock’s defensive appeal without changing the near-term setup. NVIDIA vs. Apple: Which Tech Titan Is the Better Buy Right Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Britain’s competition tribunal approved a £3 billion class action over iCloud fees, adding a meaningful legal overhang and potential financial liability for Apple. UK tribunal gives go ahead for $4 billion lawsuit against Apple over iCloud services
• Negative Sentiment: Apple also faces reputational risk after closing its first unionized U.S. store, with the union accusing the company of retaliation. Apple Just Closed Its First Unionized U.S. Store
• Negative Sentiment: Several reports say Apple is forcing price increases on hardware because memory and chip costs are rising, which could pressure demand if consumers push back. Memory's price surge threatens Apple's 'magic formula' — and the economy

Apple Price Performance

AAPL opened at $294.98 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.33 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.67, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $291.15 and a 200-day moving average of $273.06. 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 12-month low of $199.26 and a 12-month high of $317.40.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $111.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.46 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.Apple's revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.65 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This is a boost from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total transaction of $16,511,984.27. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,280,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $833,980,668.14. The trade was a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total transaction of $369,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,226,770. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 97,875 shares of company stock worth $24,998,541 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Moffett Nathanson raised their target price on shares of Apple from $241.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Robert W. Baird set a $310.00 price objective on Apple in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $314.85.

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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