Barton Investment Management Sells 2,927 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Barton Investment Management reduced its Apple stake by 10.3%, selling 2,927 shares and ending the quarter with 25,402 shares valued at about $6.91 million (Apple is 0.7% of its portfolio and its 18th-largest holding).
• Apple insiders executed large Rule 10b5-1 sales on April 2: SVP Deirdre O'Brien sold 30,002 shares (~$7.66M) and CEO Tim Cook sold 64,949 shares (~$16.51M), modestly reducing their positions.
• Apple beat quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $2.84 versus $2.67 expected and revenue of $143.76B (up 15.7% year-over-year), while the consensus price target sits around $303 and market cap is about $4.01T.

Barton Investment Management reduced its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 10.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 25,402 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 2,927 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 0.7% of Barton Investment Management's portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Barton Investment Management's holdings in Apple were worth $6,906,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Retirement Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $1,758,000. Apella Capital LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 31.0% in the 4th quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 254,471 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $69,180,000 after acquiring an additional 60,182 shares in the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 25.2% in the 4th quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 234,058 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $63,631,000 after acquiring an additional 47,105 shares in the last quarter. Avantra Family Wealth Inc. lifted its stake in Apple by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Avantra Family Wealth Inc. now owns 28,803 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $7,830,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Apple by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 94,008 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $25,557,000 after purchasing an additional 10,397 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $273.43 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $193.25 and a 1 year high of $288.62. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $259.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $264.46. The firm has a market cap of $4.01 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $143.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $138.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.40 earnings per share. Apple's revenue was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Investors 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AAPL. Phillip Securities raised Apple from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, February 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Apple from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Apple from $320.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Scotiabank set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Apple has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $303.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total transaction of $7,661,010.70. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,934,433.50. This trade represents a 17.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the firm'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 transaction of $16,511,984.27. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $833,980,668.14. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction to Apple naming John Ternus as CEO has been upbeat — investors and some analysts view his hardware pedigree as a credible path to accelerate device‑level AI and product innovation, supporting near‑term confidence in AAPL. Ternus the Page: Apple's Engineering Prodigy Takes the Reins
• Positive Sentiment: Apple patched a high‑profile iPhone notification bug that exposed deleted messages; the security fix lifted sentiment around privacy and product quality and coincided with an intraday stock bounce. Apple (AAPL) Stock Climbs as iPhone Notification Bug Gets Patched
• Positive Sentiment: Channel and shipment data show strong iPhone demand (notably China) and some broker notes (e.g., Bank of America commentary) expect iPhone 17 demand to support upcoming results — a fundamental tailwind ahead of earnings. Apple gets a stunning boost as smartphone rivals stumble
• Neutral Sentiment: April 30 earnings are the next major catalyst — previews and options activity show investors positioning for a beat/miss outcome; that event could swing AAPL materially in either direction. Apple Q2 Earnings Preview: Is AAPL Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold?
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst notes: some firms reaffirm positive ratings while others flag valuation/AI execution risks — the street is split, so analyst chatter is supporting volume but not a clear directional consensus. Wedbush Reaffirms Outperform Rating for Apple
• Negative Sentiment: Reports of a broader leadership exodus and that chip chief Johny Srouji is “seriously considering” leaving pose execution risk — losing senior hardware/AI talent could undermine product roadmaps during an AI pivot. Apple rocked by executive departures, with chip chief at risk of leaving next
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory risk surfaces in India where an accelerated antitrust probe into App Store rules could lead to structural changes or multibillion penalties — a material long‑term profit and policy risk for Apple’s services franchise. Indian Antitrust Push Tests Apple App Store Model And Valuation Narrative

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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