Apple Inc. $AAPL Stake Lifted by Mezzasalma Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Mezzasalma Advisors LLC increased its Apple stake by 7.6% in Q4 to 93,791 shares, making AAPL about 5.9% of the firm's portfolio and its fourth-largest holding, valued at $25.423 million.
• Apple beat Q results with EPS of $2.84 (vs. $2.67 consensus) and revenue of $143.76 billion (up 15.7% year‑over‑year), and analysts hold a Moderate Buy consensus with an average target of $303.06.
• Corporate changes include John Ternus being named CEO (Tim Cook to become executive chairman) and promotion of Johny Srouji to accelerate in‑house silicon, a continuity move that investors view as strategically positive but with execution risk.

Mezzasalma Advisors LLC raised its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 7.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 93,791 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 6,657 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 5.9% of Mezzasalma Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Mezzasalma Advisors LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $25,423,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Overbrook Management Corp boosted its stake in Apple by 57.4% in the fourth quarter. Overbrook Management Corp now owns 104,648 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $28,449,000 after acquiring an additional 38,174 shares during the period. Highland Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Apple by 2.2% in the third quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 397,834 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $101,301,000 after acquiring an additional 8,446 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its stake in Apple by 48.4% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 1,426,605 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $363,256,000 after acquiring an additional 465,393 shares during the period. Tufton Capital Management boosted its stake in Apple by 4.3% in the third quarter. Tufton Capital Management now owns 100,130 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $25,496,000 after acquiring an additional 4,157 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors boosted its stake in Apple by 3.9% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 734,485 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $187,022,000 after acquiring an additional 27,445 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Evercore restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $350.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday. Oppenheimer restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Moffett Nathanson lifted their target price on Apple from $241.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $303.06.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $273.17 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $259.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $264.40. The company has a market cap of $4.01 trillion, a PE ratio of 34.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.11. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $193.25 and a 12-month high of $288.62.

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. The business had revenue of $143.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $138.25 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 159.94% and a net margin of 27.04%.The business's revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.40 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Apple

In other news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total transaction of $7,661,010.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 136,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,934,433.50. The trade was a 17.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total value of $16,511,984.27. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at $833,980,668.14. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Broad tech appetite and upbeat corporate earnings are lifting market sentiment, helping AAPL rebound as the Nasdaq and S&P hit records. Nasdaq, S&P 500 Notch Peaks as Earnings Fuel Optimism
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts view Apple’s upcoming April 30 print as a possible “clearing event” that could reset narrative and drive the next leg higher if results and guidance beat — a reason some investors are buying into the leadership transition. Why April 30 Could Be a ‘Clearing Event’ for Apple
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple officially named long‑time hardware chief John Ternus as CEO (Tim Cook to become executive chairman). The move signals continuity and a product/hardware focus but is arguably neutral near term as investors evaluate Ternus’s ability to accelerate AI strategy. Apple Newsroom: Tim Cook to Become Executive Chairman; John Ternus to Become CEO
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple promoted Johny Srouji and consolidated hardware teams, underscoring a faster push on in‑house silicon — a structural positive for margins and product differentiation, but execution risk remains. Apple Promotes Chip Lead Srouji
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple pushed a security update fixing a message‑caching bug used by law enforcement — minor reputational/security positive but unlikely to move fundamentals. Apple fixes bug that cops used to extract deleted chat messages
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and data (Sensor Tower) flagged slowing Services growth and potential hardware bottlenecks; UBS has reiterated a Neutral rating and a $280 target — a reminder that Apple’s growth runway depends on resolving AI/services momentum and supply constraints. Is Slowing Services Growth and Hardware Bottleneck a Problem for Apple?
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual put option activity ahead of earnings suggests some investors are hedging or positioning for downside volatility into April 30 — elevated tails around the print increase short‑term risk. Apple Has Unusual Put Options Activity
• Negative Sentiment: Some funds have trimmed Apple exposure (recent active stake reductions reported), a small signal of profit‑taking or tactical repositioning after the run‑up. Manitou Investment Management Cuts Apple Stake

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.

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