Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Sold by Provident Investment Management Inc.

Provident Investment Management Inc. lessened its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 1.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 100,803 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 1,412 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 3.4% of Provident Investment Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Provident Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $33,570,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. Compass Ion Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Compass Ion Advisors LLC now owns 20,592 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $6,858,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Mainsail Financial Group LLC increased its position in Apple by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mainsail Financial Group LLC now owns 7,051 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,348,000 after buying an additional 1,037 shares in the last quarter. Probity Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Apple by 7.2% during the third quarter. Probity Advisors Inc. now owns 7,877 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,623,000 after buying an additional 527 shares during the last quarter. Swmg LLC raised its stake in Apple by 15.9% during the third quarter. Swmg LLC now owns 4,478 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $1,559,000 after buying an additional 615 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Yardley Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Apple by 151.5% during the third quarter. Yardley Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,080 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $1,359,000 after buying an additional 2,458 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $842,912.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 27,598 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,696,833.28. The trade was a 8.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 46,389 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares in the company, valued at $45,615,190.20. This represents a 25.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 292,611 shares of company stock worth $97,482,597 in the last three months. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Apple Stock Up 0.4%

AAPL traded up $1.39 during trading on Friday, hitting $356.27. 39,967,159 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 48,203,272. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $339.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $301.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.42 and a 12-month high of $360.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.18 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.72, a PEG ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 1.07.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $114.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $113.40 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 125.35% and a net margin of 27.60%. The company's revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.85 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 9.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 12th will be issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 12th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.04%.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

These are some of the AAPL headlines that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Bernstein cited Apple’s relatively defensive business as a safe haven amid an AI-sector selloff, helping attract investors as Nvidia weakness put pressure on technology stocks. Apple stock gains as Bernstein highlights safe-haven appeal
• Positive Sentiment: China Renaissance upgraded Apple to Buy and set a $425 price target, pointing to potential from a future foldable iPhone and interest in the company’s product lineup. Recent quarterly results also beat earnings and revenue estimates, with revenue up year over year. China Renaissance’s view on Apple
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation remains a key risk: analysts have warned Apple trades at a premium, and views are divided, including a DZ Bank downgrade to Sell. A senior vice president also continued a pattern of scheduled share sales, a modest potential overhang. Apple valuation analysis

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Argus boosted their target price on Apple from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Barclays lifted their price target on Apple from $245.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $303.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. HSBC reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Apple from $370.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $347.11.

About Apple

Apple Inc. designs, manufactures and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its products include the iPhone, Mac computers, iPad, Apple Watch and AirPods, along with operating systems and applications such as iOS, macOS and iPadOS. The company also offers services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, iCloud and Apple Pay. These products and services are integrated across Apple's devices and are sold to consumers, businesses and institutions around the world. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Cupertino, California, Apple serves customers globally through online and retail stores, wireless carriers and other resellers.

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