Apple Inc. $AAPL is Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG's 6th Largest Position

Key Points

• Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG boosted its Apple holding by 76.1% in Q4 to 563,229 shares (~$153.1M), making Apple its 6th-largest position and about 3.1% of the fund's portfolio.
• Insider selling occurred on April 2: CEO Tim Cook sold 64,949 shares (~$16.5M) and SVP Deirdre O'Brien sold 30,002 shares (~$7.66M), both under pre-arranged Rule 10b5‑1 plans; insiders own roughly 0.06% of Apple.
• Analysts remain broadly constructive—MarketBeat shows a "Moderate Buy" consensus and an average target of $301.37 (Bank of America raised its target to $325)—after Apple beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates and reported 15.7% year-over-year revenue growth.

Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG raised its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 76.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 563,229 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 243,349 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 3.1% of Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG's investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG's holdings in Apple were worth $153,119,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 110.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% during 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 in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth about $65,000. HFM Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $99,000. Finally, Miller Global Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $127,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total value of $16,511,984.27. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at $833,980,668.14. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total value of $7,661,010.70. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,810 shares in the company, valued at $34,934,433.50. This trade represents a 17.99% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. DA Davidson reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Apple from $320.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $301.37.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its price target to $325 and kept a "buy" rating, citing strong iPhone momentum, Services growth and favorable FX — a bullish catalyst ahead of Apple's earnings. Apple price target raised ahead of earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Amazon's $11.6B acquisition of Globalstar redraws the satellite connectivity landscape Apple relies on for iPhone/Watch emergency features; Apple has secured continuity for service but faces strategic exposure to a competitor-controlled network. Amazon Buys Globalstar
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports say iPhone Fold production was pushed back but the launch remains on track for fall 2026 — a delay risk for supply/timing but still keeps the new product narrative intact. iPhone Fold Production Pushed Back
• Negative Sentiment: A fake Ledger Live app on the App Store was tied to roughly $9.5M in crypto thefts — raises fresh questions about App Store review controls and potential regulatory scrutiny. Fake Ledger Live app drained $9.5M
• Negative Sentiment: Apple will close three retail stores — including its first unionized location — prompting union-busting claims and potential PR/regulatory headlines. Apple closing 3 stores
• Negative Sentiment: Apple's head of AI is reportedly leaving the company, which adds pressure as investors watch Apple’s ability to execute on generative-AI features and products. Apple head of AI is leaving

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL opened at $258.75 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.80 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.11. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $260.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $263.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $189.81 and a 12-month high of $288.62.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $143.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $138.25 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 159.94% and a net margin of 27.04%.The company's revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.40 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.15%.

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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