Apple Inc. $AAPL Position Boosted by Congress Asset Management Co.

Key Points

• Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its Apple stake by 16.2% in Q4 to 1,643,557 shares (about $446.8M), making Apple its second‑largest holding and ~3.1% of the firm's portfolio.
• Apple posted a quarterly EPS beat of $2.84 vs. $2.67 and revenue of $143.76B (up 15.7% y/y), while services grew roughly 14%, underpinning margin and earnings momentum.
• Near‑term catalysts and analyst optimism include senior AI/product hires, reports Apple will open Siri to rival assistants, several price‑target increases, and a consensus target around $297.58.

Congress Asset Management Co. raised its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 16.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,643,557 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 229,069 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 3.1% of Congress Asset Management Co.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Congress Asset Management Co.'s holdings in Apple were worth $446,817,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AAPL. Overbrook Management Corp raised 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 worth $28,449,000 after buying an additional 38,174 shares during the period. Clear Trail Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $21,946,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Apple by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Carderock Capital Management Inc. now owns 51,335 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $13,956,000 after acquiring an additional 5,805 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 122.5% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 12,588,384 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $3,422,278,000 after acquiring an additional 6,931,227 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cambridge Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Apple by 32.2% during the 4th quarter. Cambridge Financial Group LLC now owns 21,217 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $5,482,000 after acquiring an additional 5,166 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush says 2026 could be a significant product year and raises upside potential (they reiterate Outperform and a $350 target), framing WWDC and AI-driven hardware as major catalysts. Apple in focus as Wedbush calls 2026 a 'significant' product launch year ahead of WWDC
• Positive Sentiment: Apple hired ex-Google executive Lilian Rincon as VP of product marketing for AI — a concrete senior hire to accelerate Siri/AI positioning and marketing. Apple hires ex-Google executive to head AI marketing amid push to improve Siri
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple reports say Apple will open Siri to rival AI assistants (Gemini, Claude, etc.) in iOS 27 — this pivot can broaden iPhone AI capabilities without Apple building everything in‑house. Apple Plans to Open Up Siri to Rival AI Assistants in iOS 27 Update
• Positive Sentiment: Services continue to grow (reported ~14% y/y, Apple TV and gaming aiding strength) — recurring high‑margin revenue supports earnings upside even if hardware cycles lag. Strong Streaming & Game Content Aids Apple's Services: What's Ahead?
• Positive Sentiment: Apple expands U.S. manufacturing program, adding Bosch, Cirrus Logic, TDK and Qnity and committing $400M — reduces supply‑chain risk and supports domestic sourcing narrative. Apple adds Bosch, Cirrus Logic, others to US manufacturing program, to invest $400 million
• Positive Sentiment: Apple is granting rare large stock bonuses to iPhone designers to curb talent departures to AI firms — a retention step to protect future product execution. Apple Drops Six Figure Bonuses To Stop iPhone Talent Exodus
• Neutral Sentiment: An analyst tweak: Erste trimmed FY2027 EPS slightly — minimal change to consensus, but worth watching for estimate revisions. Apple Inc. analyst note (Erste Group) via MarketBeat
• Neutral Sentiment: Steve Wozniak publicly criticizes AI and says he hardly uses it — a reputational/PR datapoint but unlikely to move fundamentals. Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak admits he’s ‘disappointed a lot’ by AI and hardly uses it
• Negative Sentiment: Broader tech sector weakness — Nasdaq slide, Meta legal losses and geopolitical worries are pressuring tech stocks, which is dragging AAPL despite company‑specific positives. Tech stocks suffer worst week in nearly a year, driven down by war worries, Meta legal woes
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Apple has discontinued the Mac Pro and abandoned future updates could concern pro users and niche revenue, though impact on total revenue is limited. Apple reportedly discontinues Mac Pro, abandons plans for future updates

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $248.80 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.94. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.21 and a 1 year high of $288.62. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $260.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $262.92. The company has a market cap of $3.65 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.45, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.17. Apple had a return on equity of 159.94% and a net margin of 27.04%.The business had revenue of $143.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $138.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.40 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AAPL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Phillip Securities raised shares of Apple from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, February 1st. Moffett Nathanson raised their price objective on shares of Apple from $241.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. CLSA lifted their target price on shares of Apple from $265.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, December 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Apple from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Maxim Group upgraded Apple from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $297.58.

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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