Apple Inc. $AAPL Stake Raised by RWQ Financial Management Services Inc.

Key Points

• RWQ Financial Management Services increased its Apple stake by 12.7% in the third quarter, adding 4,395 shares to hold 39,056 shares worth about $13.0 million. Apple represents 7.3% of RWQ’s portfolio and is its largest holding.
• Apple’s quarterly results beat expectations, with revenue up 11.7% year over year to $114.48 billion and EPS of $2.10. However, the company forecast lower holiday-quarter gross margins amid rising memory-chip costs and AI-related spending.
• Analysts’ consensus rating is “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $343.28. Recent insider share sales were disclosed as covering tax withholding on vested equity awards.

RWQ Financial Management Services Inc. grew its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 12.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 39,056 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 4,395 shares during the period. Apple comprises 7.3% of RWQ Financial Management Services Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. RWQ Financial Management Services Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $13,006,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. James Hambro & Partners LLP increased its position in shares of Apple by 90.0% during the third quarter. James Hambro & Partners LLP now owns 4,878 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $1,625,000 after acquiring an additional 2,310 shares during the period. Kondo Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Apple by 0.4% in the third quarter. Kondo Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 13,224 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $4,405,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Washburn Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Apple by 17.5% in the third quarter. Washburn Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,800 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $4,596,000 after purchasing an additional 2,055 shares during the period. Gimbal Financial grew its stake in Apple by 760.7% during the 3rd quarter. Gimbal Financial now owns 31,106 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $10,359,000 after purchasing an additional 27,492 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prairie Advisory LLC grew its stake in Apple by 97.7% during the 3rd quarter. Prairie Advisory LLC now owns 81,316 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $27,080,000 after purchasing an additional 40,190 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Timothy Cook sold 191,753 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.96, for a total transaction of $63,846,078.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 3,264,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,086,837,377.28. This represents a 5.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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 Apple 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 sale, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $45,615,190.20. The trade was a 25.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 289,252 shares of company stock valued at $96,301,063. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Apple from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Apple from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $340.00 target price (up from $296.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $343.28.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $331.90 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $334.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $297.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a market capitalization of $4.84 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.07. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.42 and a 52-week high of $351.73.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.11. Apple had a net margin of 27.60% and a return on equity of 128.88%. The company had revenue of $114.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $113.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.85 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 9.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 12th. Apple's payout ratio is 12.39%.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple reported record September-quarter revenue of $114.48 billion, up 11.7% year over year, and EPS of $2.10, beating analyst estimates. Strong iPhone demand—iPhone revenue rose 17.5%—and Mac sales helped drive the results. Apple Q4 Earnings Beat Estimates, iPhone Drives Top-Line Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America reiterated its Buy rating, arguing that investors should look beyond near-term margin pressure to Apple’s longer-term opportunity. Buy Apple Stock After Earnings, Says Bank of America
• Negative Sentiment: The main pressure is Apple’s forecast for a 45%–46% gross margin in the holiday quarter, below the recent quarter’s 47.9%. Management cited sharply higher memory-chip costs and spending tied to Siri AI; investors worry these expenses will limit profit growth even with strong sales. Apple Shares Slide as Higher Memory Costs Fuel Margin Concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Investors also saw softer signals beneath the headline beat: services growth is expected to slow, China revenue missed expectations, and higher component costs are being accompanied by increased inventory and supplier commitments. The stock’s premium valuation may make it more vulnerable if growth or margins disappoint. Apple Growth, Margins Likely Face Pressure in 2027, UBS Says

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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