Apple Inc. $AAPL Stock: Capital Investment Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings

Key Points

• Capital Investment Advisors increased its Apple stake by 0.7% in the third quarter, adding 3,273 shares to reach 490,862 shares valued at about $163.5 million. Apple represents 2% of the firm’s portfolio; institutional investors collectively own 67.73% of the stock.
• Apple beat quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $2.10 per share and $114.48 billion in revenue, up 11.7% year over year. Analysts’ consensus rating is “Moderate Buy,” with a $347.11 average price target.
• Shares opened at $354.88, near their one-year high, while recent coverage cited elevated valuation and higher memory-chip costs as risks to margins. Apple also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share.

Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 490,862 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 3,273 shares during the period. Apple accounts for 2.0% of Capital Investment Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Capital Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $163,467,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Phillip Securities lowered shares of Apple from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research report on Friday, November 6th. Daiwa Securities Group increased their target price on Apple from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Guggenheim set a $400.00 price objective on Apple in a research report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. Finally, Maxim Group boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $347.11.

Apple Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $354.88 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.94. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.42 and a 1 year high of $359.37. The company has a market capitalization of $5.16 trillion, a P/E ratio of 39.56, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.07. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $338.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $300.56.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.11. Apple had a return on equity of 125.35% and a net margin of 27.60%. The firm had revenue of $114.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $113.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.85 EPS. The company's revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 9.45 EPS 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 paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 12th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, insider Timothy Cook sold 191,753 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.96, for a total value of $63,846,078.88. Following the transaction, the insider owned 3,264,168 shares in the company, valued at $1,086,837,377.28. The trade was a 5.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.01, for a total value of $796,491.99. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 39,593 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,145,271.93. The trade was a 5.71% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 292,611 shares of company stock worth $97,482,597. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Latest Apple News

These are some of the AAPL news items that stood out recently:

• Neutral Sentiment: Google is bringing its Gemini assistant to Apple CarPlay, adding a new AI feature for iPhone users. The partnership may improve CarPlay’s utility, though the assistant is Google’s service rather than Apple’s. Google Brings Gemini Live to Apple CarPlay
• Negative Sentiment: Higher memory-chip prices are a near-term margin risk. Apple’s December-quarter gross-margin outlook was reported below analyst expectations, despite record quarterly sales, raising concerns that component costs could weigh on profitability. Why Apple Stock Fell Despite a Record Quarter
• Negative Sentiment: Some analysts and investors view AAPL as expensive after its strong run, while recent coverage shows disagreement on the outlook, including a DZ Bank downgrade to Sell. Rich valuation leaves less room for disappointment. Apple Shares Look Expensive Heading into 2027

Apple Company Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AAPL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report).

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.