Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC Sells 3,156 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Beaumont Financial Advisors cut its Apple stake by 1.2%, selling 3,156 shares; it still held 252,033 shares valued at about $83.9 million, making Apple its largest portfolio position.
• Institutional investors own 67.73% of Apple shares, with several major firms—including State Street and Amundi—adding to their holdings.
• Apple beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, with revenue up 11.7% year over year. Analyst views were mixed, though the consensus rating was “Moderate Buy” with a $347.11 price target.

Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 252,033 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 3,156 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up approximately 5.3% of Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its largest position. Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $83,932,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in Apple by 4.7% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 630,662,494 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $182,897,769,000 after purchasing an additional 28,321,085 shares during the period. Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased a new stake in Apple in the second quarter worth about $65,950,297,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the second quarter valued at approximately $36,986,090,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,443,242,000. Finally, Amundi increased its position in Apple by 23.2% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 73,082,616 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $18,547,637,000 after buying an additional 13,780,080 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

These are some of the AAPL stories that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple recently reached a record high, with one analyst describing the stock as a “safe haven” amid market turmoil. CIBC also included AAPL among its post-election stock picks. Apple Stock Called 'Safe Haven,' Hits Record High
• Positive Sentiment: China Renaissance upgraded Apple to Buy from Hold and set a $425 price target, citing potential from the first foldable iPhone. Coverage also points to strong interest in the new iPhone lineup as a possible catalyst for continued growth. Apple stock gains as analyst sets a $425 target
• 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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apple news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,392 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.05, for a total transaction of $480,309.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 17,539 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,051,831.95. The trade was a 7.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO John Ternus sold 25,412 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.94, for a total transaction of $8,460,671.28. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 59,567 shares in the company, valued at $19,832,236.98. This represents a 29.90% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 292,611 shares of company stock worth $97,482,597 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on AAPL shares. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, October 27th. Maxim Group raised their price objective on shares of Apple from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. China Renaissance raised shares of Apple from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $425.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday. Yorkville Ives started coverage on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Apple from $400.00 to $390.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $347.11.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL opened at $354.88 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average is $338.48 and its 200 day moving average is $300.56. The company has a market cap of $5.16 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.56, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.07. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.42 and a 12-month high of $359.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $2.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.11. Apple had a net margin of 27.60% and a return on equity of 125.35%. The firm had revenue of $114.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $113.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.85 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 9.45 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 12th will be issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 12th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.04%.

Apple 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.

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