Apple Inc. $AAPL is Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.'s Largest Position

Key Points

• Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. remains a major Apple holder even after trimming its stake by 2.6% in the first quarter, still owning 559,986 shares worth about $142.1 million. Apple is the fund’s largest position and makes up roughly 4.4% of its portfolio.
• Apple continues to draw strong institutional interest overall, with hedge funds and other investors owning 67.73% of the stock. Several firms increased their positions in recent quarters, though some insiders also sold shares.
• Wall Street remains broadly constructive on Apple, with analysts assigning a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $314.85. The company also beat quarterly earnings expectations and recently raised its dividend to $0.27 per share.

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. trimmed its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 559,986 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 14,784 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 4.4% of Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest position. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.'s holdings in Apple were worth $142,119,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First National Bank of Hutchinson raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 24.6% during the 4th quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $8,845,000 after acquiring an additional 6,982 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $13,544,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $134,554,000 after purchasing 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 purchasing an additional 2,695 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE raised its stake in Apple by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 50,264 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $12,587,000 after purchasing an additional 1,155 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other news, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total value of $369,460.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,226,770. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $421,850.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,675,650. This represents a 10.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 2,924 shares of company stock valued at $825,546 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on AAPL shares. Robert W. Baird set a $310.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, June 26th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $310.00 price target (up from $300.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating and set a $380.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $314.85.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s new lawsuit against OpenAI could help protect its hardware roadmap and reinforce its control over proprietary technology, which may support its long-term competitive position. Reuters: Apple sues OpenAI, two former employees for trade secrets theft
• Positive Sentiment: Recent headlines around Apple’s expanded multi-year chip deal with Broadcom continue to boost sentiment, since the agreement strengthens Apple’s supply chain, supports U.S. manufacturing, and deepens its custom silicon strategy. Yahoo Finance: Apple Secures Largest Ever US Chip Deal With Broadcom For $30 Billion
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple was also named among approved U.S. companies eligible for license-free exports under eased UAE trade rules, which is supportive for international operations but not clearly a near-term stock catalyst. Quiver Quant: U.S. eases export controls on UAE
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no meaningful change, suggesting today’s move is being driven more by news flow than by a shift in bearish positioning.
• Negative Sentiment: The OpenAI lawsuit also highlights that Apple’s relationship with a major AI player has soured, adding uncertainty around future AI partnerships and potentially distracting management with litigation. Financial Times: Apple sues OpenAI, alleging it stole top-secret information

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL stock opened at $315.32 on Monday. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $201.50 and a twelve month high of $317.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.63 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $299.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $275.29.

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. The firm had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.46 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. The business's revenue was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.65 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate 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 was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. This is a boost from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.06%.

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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