Apple Inc. $AAPL is Baskin Financial Services Inc.'s 2nd Largest Position

Key Points

• Baskin Financial Services trimmed its Apple stake by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, but Apple remains its second-largest holding and makes up 6.5% of the portfolio.
• Apple’s latest quarterly results were strong, with EPS of $2.01 and revenue of $111.18 billion both beating expectations; the company also raised its dividend and approved a $100 billion buyback.
• Wall Street sentiment remains upbeat, with several firms lifting price targets and analysts maintaining a Moderate Buy consensus as investors focus on Apple’s AI plans and long-term growth prospects.

Baskin Financial Services Inc. lessened its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 315,458 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 6,996 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 6.5% of Baskin Financial Services Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Baskin Financial Services Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $85,760,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AAPL. First National Bank of Hutchinson increased its position in Apple by 24.6% during the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $8,845,000 after acquiring an additional 6,982 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC increased its position in Apple by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $13,544,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Apple by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $134,554,000 after buying an additional 69,207 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in Apple by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,857 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $16,742,000 after buying an additional 2,695 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE increased its position in Apple by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 50,264 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $12,587,000 after buying an additional 1,155 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $298.21 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $193.46 and a 12-month high of $300.92. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $264.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $267.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.38 trillion, a P/E ratio of 36.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.06.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.The firm had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.65 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research 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. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $421,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,675,650. This trade represents a 10.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total value of $7,661,010.70. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at $34,934,433.50. This represents a 17.99% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 97,759 shares of company stock worth $24,964,305. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s latest quarter was a clear beat, with revenue of $111.18 billion and EPS of $2.01 topping expectations, while management also approved a fresh $100 billion buyback and raised the dividend.
• Positive Sentiment: Evercore ISI raised its price target on Apple to $365 from $330 and reiterated an Outperform rating, citing strong Services growth and long-term earnings/free-cash-flow compounding.
• Positive Sentiment: Investor enthusiasm remains elevated around Apple’s AI roadmap, with reports pointing to WWDC as a potential catalyst and broader expectations that Apple can monetize AI through devices and Services.
• Positive Sentiment: China-related headlines may also help sentiment, as Xi Jinping told U.S. CEOs including Tim Cook that China will “open wider,” easing some concerns about Apple’s supply chain and market access.
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple is reportedly exploring new AI-agent support in the App Store and additional iOS features, which could support the ecosystem but are still early-stage product rumors.
• Neutral Sentiment: Security reports about vulnerabilities found in macOS/iOS are a reminder of cyber risks, but they do not yet appear to be a material earnings issue.
• Negative Sentiment: OpenAI is reportedly considering legal action against Apple over their ChatGPT partnership, raising the risk of a public dispute around Apple’s AI strategy.
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider selling and a reported Foxconn ransomware incident may slightly temper sentiment, though neither looks large enough to outweigh the bullish earnings and analyst upgrades.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on AAPL shares. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $330.00 price target (up from $315.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America upped their price target on Apple from $320.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Scotiabank set a $330.00 price target on Apple in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. DA Davidson restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $308.74.

Apple 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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