Apple Inc. $AAPL is Sapient Capital LLC's 4th Largest Position

Key Points

• Sapient Capital trimmed its Apple stake by 18.8% in the first quarter, selling 256,269 shares while retaining 1.11 million shares valued at approximately $280.4 million. Apple remains the firm’s fourth-largest position, representing 4.2% of its portfolio.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with Apple holding a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $328.60, though targets range from $250 to $400 and some analysts cited valuation and competitive concerns.
• Apple reported quarterly EPS of $2.02 versus estimates of $1.89, while revenue rose 16.4% year over year to $109.42 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share, although rising component costs and modest insider selling remain potential concerns.

Sapient Capital LLC trimmed its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 18.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,105,077 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 256,269 shares during the period. Apple comprises about 4.2% of Sapient Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Sapient Capital LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $280,404,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Apple by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $387,749,545,000 after acquiring an additional 26,856,752 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 604,056,505 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $164,218,801,000 after purchasing an additional 6,555,392 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Apple by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 358,032,517 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $97,031,587,000 after purchasing an additional 1,866,103 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Apple by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 230,483,035 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $62,659,118,000 after purchasing an additional 1,379,651 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at $52,266,468,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.75, for a total transaction of $442,852.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 40,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,342,929.25. This represents a 3.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 38,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,425,754.82. This trade represents a 0.30% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AAPL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Apple from $345.00 to $340.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 31st. DZ Bank downgraded shares of Apple from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $310.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price target on shares of Apple from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Apple from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, KeyCorp reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $328.60.

More Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple reportedly received approximately $2.2 billion in tariff refunds, which could support near-term cash flow and earnings. More than 40 S&P 500 companies have reported receiving refunds from the broader tariff program. S&P 500 Companies Claim First Payouts From $100 Billion Tariff Refund Wave
• Positive Sentiment: Apple opened a 20,000-square-foot Advanced Manufacturing Center in Houston, where it plans to assemble Mac mini computers and co-locate advanced AI-server production. The facility strengthens Apple’s U.S. manufacturing narrative and may improve supplier capabilities. Apple's Tim Cook joined by Howard Lutnick in opening Houston manufacturing plant
• Positive Sentiment: Norway’s sovereign wealth fund disclosed Apple as its second-largest global holding, valued at roughly 522 billion Norwegian kroner. The position provides a signal of continued confidence from a major long-term investor. Apple Stock Rises While Norway Fund Reveals Huge Position
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple is negotiating performance-based licensing agreements with publishers to supply current content for an upgraded, AI-powered Siri. The deals could improve Siri’s usefulness, but the potential nine-figure expense would pressure services margins and monetization remains uncertain. Apple in Talks to Pay Publishers to Improve AI-Powered Siri
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies reduced its Apple price target, questioning whether the company has enough product and artificial-intelligence momentum to justify its premium valuation. Google’s new Pixel 11 lineup also intensifies competition ahead of Apple’s expected Siri and iPhone updates. Apple Stock Falls After Jefferies Slashes Price Target
• Negative Sentiment: Rising memory and other component costs could erode Apple’s margins even if demand remains strong. Apple is testing Chinese supplier CXMT for DRAM, which could diversify supply but introduces geopolitical and quality-related risks. Apple Stock's Biggest Risk Is The Memory Bill, Not Demand
• Negative Sentiment: Senior Vice President Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 Apple shares for approximately $443,000, reducing her direct stake by 3.46%. The transaction is relatively small but may add modest insider-selling pressure. Apple SEC Form 4 Insider Sale

Apple Price Performance

AAPL opened at $305.26 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $223.78 and a twelve month high of $344.57. The firm has a market cap of $4.46 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.01, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $309.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $285.04.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%.The company had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.57 EPS. Apple's quarterly revenue was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple's payout ratio is 12.39%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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