Apple Inc. $AAPL is Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV's 3rd Largest Position

Key Points

• Nations Financial Group boosted its Apple stake by 6.7% in the fourth quarter, making Apple its 3rd largest holding at about $44.1 million.
• Apple reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.01 on revenue of $111.18 billion, and revenue rose 16.6% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.27 per share.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on Apple, with a Moderate Buy consensus and a target price of $305.74, while recent commentary highlights AI-driven growth potential and upcoming WWDC as possible catalysts.

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV increased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 6.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 162,037 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 10,241 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 2.3% of Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV's holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV's holdings in Apple were worth $44,051,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Trinity Legacy Partners LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Trinity Legacy Partners LLC now owns 44,229 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $12,024,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. WorthPointe LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. WorthPointe LLC now owns 11,834 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,217,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $19,756,000. Hassell Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Hassell Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,084 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $533,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 68,845 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $18,716,000 after purchasing an additional 10,726 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were 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 directly owned 13,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,675,650. This represents a 10.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the company'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 sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,280,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $833,980,668.14. This represents a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 96,485 shares of company stock valued at $24,594,845. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $325.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Maxim Group raised shares of Apple from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $310.00 price objective (up from $300.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $305.74.

Apple Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $293.25 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $193.46 and a 12 month high of $294.76. The stock has a market cap of $4.31 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $261.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $266.04.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $109.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.65 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be issued 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 13.06%.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush lifted Apple’s price target to $400 and said AI could drive a major growth wave for AAPL. Apple price target boosted by Wedbush on AI monetization expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple reached a preliminary chip-making deal with Intel boosted confidence in Apple’s manufacturing strategy and supply chain flexibility. Apple, Intel Have Reached Preliminary Chip-Making Agreement
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see WWDC as a potential inflection point, with upcoming AI-related software features seen as a possible catalyst for Apple’s next leg higher. Apple’s biggest bull is now calling for a 37% stock jump
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple remains near its recent highs after strong quarterly results, keeping investor expectations elevated ahead of the next catalyst. Dow Jones Futures: Market At Highs With Iran, Trump-Xi Summit In Focus; Apple, Nvidia, Boeing In Buy Areas
• Negative Sentiment: Apple also faces ongoing legal and regulatory noise, including a Siri settlement and App Store antitrust disputes, which could weigh on sentiment if they escalate. Apple promised a smarter Siri, but a lawsuit says it didn’t deliver—and you can get up to $95 back

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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