Apple Inc. $AAPL Stock Holdings Lessened by Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management

Key Points

• Empirical Wealth Management reduced its Apple stake by 1.1% in the first quarter, selling 6,927 shares and retaining 612,419 shares valued at approximately $155.4 million. Apple remains the firm’s seventh-largest holding and represents 2.7% of its portfolio.
• Apple recently reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with revenue up 16.6% year over year to $111.18 billion and EPS of $2.01. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.27 per share, or $1.08 annually.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $327.40 price target, but elevated valuation and potential pressure from slowing growth, component costs and tariffs remain key risks ahead of earnings.

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management lessened its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 1.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 612,419 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 6,927 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 2.7% of Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management's holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management's holdings in Apple were worth $155,426,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC grew its position in Apple by 1,800.0% in the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $65,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $69,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC purchased a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter worth $76,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Investor optimism is building ahead of earnings. Analysts expect continued strength in iPhone and Services revenue, while Goldman Sachs raised its price target and projected outperformance in iPhone and Mac sales. Options activity also indicates expectations for a substantial post-earnings move. Goldman raises Apple price target
• Positive Sentiment: Apple launched Apple Upgrade, a U.S. leasing program powered by Klarna. Customers can lease iPhones, Macs, iPads and Apple Watches through monthly payments, including iPhone plans starting at $17.99. The program could improve affordability, support upgrade frequency and broaden access to Apple’s hardware ecosystem. Apple launches US device leasing program with Klarna
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s privacy positioning is receiving favorable attention after users’ seemingly private Claude AI conversations appeared in Google search results. The publicity may reinforce Apple’s privacy brand, although the direct financial impact is unclear. Claude chats exposed in Google searches
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and execution risks are elevated. KeyBanc remains bearish, citing slowing unit and user growth, while Apple’s premium earnings multiple leaves limited room for an earnings or outlook disappointment. Investors will closely watch iPhone demand, Services growth, margins and management commentary during Tim Cook’s final earnings call as CEO. Apple earnings preview
• Negative Sentiment: Rising memory and component costs could pressure hardware margins, particularly if tariffs restrict Apple’s access to lower-cost Chinese suppliers. Separately, a lawsuit alleges that a fraudulent Bitcoin wallet app on the App Store caused about $1.8 million in losses, creating a modest App Store oversight and reputational risk. Memory tariffs and Apple margins

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $340.08 on Wednesday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $308.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $280.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $4.99 trillion, a PE ratio of 41.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.10. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $201.50 and a fifty-two week high of $342.89.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $109.46 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.65 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were given 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 was Monday, May 11th. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Apple's payout ratio is 13.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Raymond James Financial set a $380.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Maxim Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $350.00 price target (up from $310.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $310.00 price objective (up from $300.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $327.40.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Company Profile

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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