Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Bought by Sustainable Growth Advisers LP

Key Points

• Sustainable Growth Advisers LP increased its Apple stake by 6.7% in the third quarter, adding 116,988 shares to hold 1.86 million shares worth approximately $620.9 million. Apple represents 6.8% of the firm’s portfolio, while institutional investors own 67.73% of the stock.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with Apple carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $340.59, despite several neutral, hold and underperform ratings.
• Apple shares opened at $348.91, near their 52-week high of $351.73, and trade at about 40 times earnings. The company’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, with revenue rising 16.4% year over year, though elevated valuation, component-cost pressures and insider selling present risks.

Sustainable Growth Advisers LP lifted its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,864,370 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after buying an additional 116,988 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises approximately 6.8% of Sustainable Growth Advisers LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP's holdings in Apple were worth $620,872,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Prospect Hill Management LLC acquired a new position in Apple in the second quarter valued at about $146,370,000. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 2nd quarter worth about $168,646,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 2nd quarter worth about $482,388,000. Satovsky Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 2nd quarter worth about $16,064,000. Finally, Gouws Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 136.9% in the 3rd quarter. Gouws Capital LLC now owns 37,504 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $12,490,000 after acquiring an additional 21,676 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on AAPL shares. Seaport Research Partners lowered shares of Apple from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Jefferies Financial Group restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, August 17th. They issued a "neutral" rating for the company. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, October 1st. Finally, Barclays reissued an "underweight" rating and set a $245.00 price target (down from $253.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have issued a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $340.59.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,392 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.05, for a total value of $480,309.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 17,539 shares in the company, valued at $6,051,831.95. This represents a 7.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 46,389 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.42, for a total transaction of $15,467,020.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at $45,615,190.20. This trade represents a 25.32% 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. Insiders sold 289,252 shares of company stock worth $96,301,063 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain optimistic ahead of earnings, citing strong demand for Apple’s new iPhone Duo, continued Services growth and potential AI-related momentum. Options activity also points to expectations for a post-earnings rally. Apple's Q4 Earnings Loom
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reaffirmed its Buy rating, while Monness raised its price target to $355. Apple is also attracting attention as it approaches Nvidia in market capitalization, with revenue growth described as its fastest in about five years. Apple Stock Heads Toward All-Time High
• Positive Sentiment: Apple launched its first touchscreen MacBook Pro, featuring OLED displays and M5 Pro and M5 Max chips. The move expands the Mac product cycle and could support higher average selling prices, despite the premium starting price. Apple Shows First Touchscreen Laptops
• Neutral Sentiment: Forty-seven exchange-traded funds added to their Apple holdings, indicating continued institutional demand, although the purchases do not necessarily signal near-term changes in fundamentals. 47 ETFs Add to Apple Holdings
• Negative Sentiment: Investors face margin and valuation concerns. AI-driven flash-memory demand has sharply increased component costs, while Apple’s roughly 40-times earnings multiple leaves limited room for disappointing guidance. AI Has Made Flash Memory More Expensive
• Negative Sentiment: South Korea fined Apple and Google a combined $47.6 million over alleged unfair app-payment practices. Early reports of cracked iPhone Duo screens and an executive stock sale add smaller sources of investor caution. South Korea Fines Google and Apple

Apple Trading Up 1.5%

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $348.91 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.09 trillion, a P/E ratio of 40.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock's 50-day moving average is $332.37 and its 200-day moving average is $295.96. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $243.42 and a one year high of $351.73.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%. The business had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $109.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.57 EPS. Apple's revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Company Profile

Apple Inc designs, develops and sells consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its best-known products include the iPhone smartphone, Mac personal computers, iPad tablets, Apple Watch, AirPods and other accessories. The company also develops operating systems and applications that support its hardware ecosystem.

Apple's services business includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV, Apple Arcade, iCloud, Apple Pay and other subscription, payment and digital-content offerings.

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