Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Acquired by Clough Capital Partners L P

Key Points

• Clough Capital Partners increased its Apple stake by 34.2% in the first quarter, adding 39,004 shares to own 152,956 shares valued at approximately $38.8 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 67.73% of Apple.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $328.60, despite some downgrades and concerns about iPhone pricing power, production costs, and Apple’s valuation.
• Apple reported quarterly earnings of $2.02 per share and revenue of $109.42 billion, exceeding estimates, while revenue increased 16.4% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share, representing a 0.4% annualized yield.

Clough Capital Partners L P increased its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 34.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 152,956 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 39,004 shares during the period. Apple makes up 3.7% of Clough Capital Partners L P's investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Clough Capital Partners L P's holdings in Apple were worth $38,819,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 11.7% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 8,235,113 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,089,989,000 after buying an additional 865,600 shares in the last quarter. ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC bought a new stake in Apple during the first quarter worth approximately $360,000. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Apple by 155.4% during the first quarter. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC now owns 214,976 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $54,559,000 after purchasing an additional 130,820 shares during the period. Everest Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Apple by 21.1% during the first quarter. Everest Financial Group LLC now owns 82,933 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $21,048,000 after purchasing an additional 14,432 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp grew its holdings in Apple by 22.5% during the first quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 2,851,506 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $723,684,000 after purchasing an additional 523,765 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAPL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Raymond James Financial restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Apple from $364.00 to $360.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 31st. China Renaissance downgraded shares of Apple from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $280.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their target price 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. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Apple from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Apple currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $328.60.

Apple Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of AAPL opened at $304.91 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $309.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $284.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.45 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.00. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $223.78 and a 52 week high of $344.57.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.13. Apple had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 135.46%. The business had revenue of $109.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $109.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.57 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.39%.

Apple News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s latest quarter was its strongest June quarter on record, with revenue rising 16.4% year over year to $109.42 billion and earnings per share of $2.02, ahead of Wall Street expectations. Some investors and analysts, including Gene Munster, view the recent weakness as an attractive accumulation opportunity and anticipate a substantial iPhone upgrade cycle. Apple’s Dip Below $310 is a Great Accumulation Opportunity
• Positive Sentiment: Apple is reportedly exploring alternative memory suppliers, including China’s CXMT, as artificial-intelligence demand tightens global DRAM supplies. Diversifying procurement could help reduce shortages and limit production disruptions, although U.S. restrictions may constrain the opportunity. Apple tests China’s CXMT memory chips
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple is participating in efforts to make AI-generated content traceable, potentially strengthening platform trust and content provenance over time. The initiative is strategically relevant but is unlikely to materially affect near-term earnings. Tech’s Big Push to Make AI Content Traceable
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple Pay and Wallet chief Jennifer Bailey is retiring, creating another senior leadership transition. The impact depends on the successor and execution in financial services. Jennifer Bailey retires
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies downgraded AAPL from Hold to Underperform and cut its price target to $263.66 from $285.56. The firm cited supply-chain checks suggesting Apple may have abandoned a high-end all-glass iPhone, weakening the case for significantly higher average selling prices. Bloomberg separately reported that the 2027 device may still be on track, leaving uncertainty rather than confirmation. Jefferies downgrades Apple
• Negative Sentiment: Surging memory and storage costs could raise iPhone production expenses by roughly 38%, forcing Apple to choose between higher prices that could pressure demand and lower margins. Reports that iPhone prices have already increased by as much as $300 are intensifying concerns about consumer affordability and pricing power. Apple’s Next iPhone Could Test Pricing Power
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst confidence has cooled despite strong revenue growth, with investors questioning whether Apple can sustain premium-device growth at its roughly $4.45 trillion valuation, particularly as Nvidia and other AI leaders capture more market enthusiasm.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

About Apple

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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