Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Sells 58,274 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Artisan Partners trimmed its Apple stake by 6% in Q3, selling 58,274 shares and now holds 911,715 shares valued at about $232.15 million.
• Apple reported a quarterly EPS of $2.84 (vs. $2.67 est.) and revenue of $143.76 billion (up 15.7% YoY); analysts' consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $297.58 while the stock trades near $260.81 (market cap ~$3.83 trillion).

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership cut its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 911,715 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 58,274 shares during the quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership's holdings in Apple were worth $232,150,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. American Alpha Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. American Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 1,151 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $293,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Capstone Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 0.5% in the third quarter. Capstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,537 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,174,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Avant Capital LLC boosted its position in Apple by 0.9% during the third quarter. Avant Capital LLC now owns 4,814 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $1,226,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Tacita Capital Inc boosted its position in Apple by 0.8% during the third quarter. Tacita Capital Inc now owns 5,718 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $1,456,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aspetuck Financial Management LLC grew its holdings in Apple by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Aspetuck Financial Management LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $4,507,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AAPL. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on Apple from $267.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Maxim Group raised shares of Apple from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $315.00 target price (down from $330.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $297.58.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $260.81 on Thursday. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.21 and a 12-month high of $288.62. The business's fifty day moving average is $262.82 and its 200 day moving average is $261.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market cap of $3.83 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.10.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.17. Apple had a net margin of 27.04% and a return on equity of 159.94%. The business had revenue of $143.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $138.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.40 EPS. Apple's quarterly revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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 of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple's payout ratio is presently 13.15%.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple has accelerated its supply‑chain diversification: India now accounts for about 25% of iPhone output after a ~53% production increase, reducing China/tariff risk and improving supply resilience. Apple’s India Production Grows As German Antitrust Risks Test Valuation
• Positive Sentiment: New, lower‑priced hardware is expanding TAM: analysts expect Apple to ship ~4–5M MacBook Neo units this year and the $599 MacBook Neo aims at the entry PC market — a potential growth lever for Mac revenue and share. Apple likely to ship 4-5M MacBook Neos this year, expand tech giant's brand: analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Product and platform momentum: new M5 Pro/Max Macs and strong reviews for high‑end MacBook Pros support the premium ecosystem and help defend margins in creative/pro markets. Testing Apple’s 2026 16-inch MacBook Pro, M5 Max, and its new “performance” cores - Ars Technica
• Neutral Sentiment: Bull case cites rising free cash‑flow expectations that support long‑term valuation; these are constructive but already priced into a high market cap and premium multiple. Apple: Rising Free Cash Flow Expectations Strengthen The Bull Case
• Negative Sentiment: UBS reiterated a Hold and flagged a sharp decline in iPhone shipments in China — a near‑term demand concern that pressures growth expectations and could weigh on revenue guidance. UBS Maintains a Hold Rating on Apple (AAPL) As Shipmments Drop in China
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/legal risk: German publishers say recent ATT revisions don’t fix competition issues and are urging antitrust fines — a potential headwind for App Store rules and services revenue. German publishers reject Apple's revised app tracking rules, urge antitrust fine
• Negative Sentiment: Product execution risk: reports that Siri problems have delayed Apple’s smart home display point to AI/voice assistant challenges that could slow expansion into new hardware categories. Apple’s Siri Troubles Put Smart Home Display On Hold

Apple 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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