Apple Inc. $AAPL is Middleton & Co. Inc. MA's 2nd Largest Position

Key Points

• Middleton & Co. Inc. MA trimmed its Apple stake by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, but Apple remains its second-largest holding. The firm still owned 227,411 shares valued at about $61.8 million.
• Apple reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings per share of $2.01 versus estimates of $1.95 and revenue of $111.18 billion, up 16.6% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.27 per share.
• Sentiment around Apple remains broadly positive, with analysts lifting price targets on expectations that AI features and a redesigned Siri could drive future growth. Apple’s stock was trading near its 52-week high and the company’s market cap stood at about $4.57 trillion.

Middleton & Co. Inc. MA lessened its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 227,411 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 4,538 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for about 6.6% of Middleton & Co. Inc. MA's holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Middleton & Co. Inc. MA's holdings in Apple were worth $61,824,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Overbrook Management Corp boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 57.4% in the fourth quarter. Overbrook Management Corp now owns 104,648 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $28,449,000 after purchasing an additional 38,174 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 48.4% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 1,426,605 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $363,256,000 after purchasing an additional 465,393 shares during the period. Tufton Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 4.3% in the third quarter. Tufton Capital Management now owns 100,130 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $25,496,000 after purchasing an additional 4,157 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 7,044,697 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $1,915,172,000 after purchasing an additional 214,215 shares during the period. Finally, Montis Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 15.8% in the third quarter. Montis Financial LLC now owns 77,919 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $19,841,000 after purchasing an additional 10,640 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

More Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its price target on Apple to $380, saying AI features and a redesigned Siri could drive substantial incremental revenue over the next few years. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Melius Research also boosted its outlook ahead of WWDC 2026, saying Apple could finally show “real AI sizzle,” which has helped fuel expectations for a stronger product cycle. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple pieces highlight Apple’s recent stock strength, including new record highs and growing optimism that the company’s Services business and ecosystem remain resilient even as iPhone growth slows. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: News that Android smartphone makers may be hit harder than Apple by AI memory shortages could be relatively supportive for AAPL by comparison, but it is more of an industry backdrop than a direct catalyst. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles point to Apple trading near all-time highs and approaching a $5 trillion valuation, reinforcing bullish momentum, though these are mostly commentary rather than fresh company-specific developments. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors remain cautious because iPhone shipment momentum is softening and Apple’s next major growth driver still needs to be proven at WWDC, which leaves room for disappointment if AI announcements underwhelm. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: One Reuters item notes Apple and Google are pushing back against Canada’s online safety bill over encryption concerns, a regulatory issue that could create future headline risk. Article Title

Insider Activity at Apple

In other news, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total value of $369,460.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,226,770. The trade was a 3.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $421,850.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,675,650. This represents a 10.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 97,759 shares of company stock worth $24,964,305 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Up 0.8%

AAPL stock opened at $310.85 on Thursday. 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 twelve month low of $195.07 and a twelve month high of $313.26. The company's 50 day moving average is $273.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $269.45. The stock has a market cap of $4.57 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.59, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.06.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $111.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.65 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was 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 yield of 0.3%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 13.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Phillip Securities raised shares of Apple from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, February 1st. Barclays reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $253.00 price objective (up from $248.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $380.00 price objective (up from $330.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $310.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $310.31.

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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