Czech National Bank raised its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,180,584 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 182,239 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for about 6.6% of Czech National Bank's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Czech National Bank's holdings in Apple were worth $1,209,694,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in Apple during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% during the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $69,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at $76,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.
More Apple News
Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Incoming CEO John Ternus is expected to reassess Apple’s research-and-development budget and potentially increase spending on AI. Analysts see stronger investment in Siri and other AI products as a way to close the gap with technology rivals. Apple Could Get a New R&D and AI Budget
- Positive Sentiment: Potential product catalysts include an AI-enhanced Siri expected later this year, camera-equipped AI AirPods targeted for 2027 and a foldable iPhone that one analyst estimates could sell 14 million units by 2027. Successful launches could support a major upgrade cycle. Apple Wants to Pay Publishers to Improve Siri
- Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s nationwide rollout of contactless payments will add Apple Pay acceptance across its U.S. stores, websites and apps. The move expands Apple Pay’s reach and strengthens Apple’s services ecosystem. Walmart Adds Apple Pay Nationwide
- Neutral Sentiment: Options activity showed a modestly bullish bias, with calls outnumbering puts, while implied volatility remained below its 52-week median. However, the signal was not strong enough to establish a decisive near-term direction. Apple Options Sentiment
- Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s leadership change on September 1 is creating both opportunity and uncertainty. Bank of America maintains a Buy view but says Ternus must deliver more surprising products and technologies because the company has become increasingly predictable. Apple Must Relearn How to Surprise
- Negative Sentiment: Apple reportedly cut more than 200 positions tied to Siri and the Vision Pro headset while redirecting resources toward future devices. The restructuring may improve efficiency, but it also highlights execution challenges in AI and spatial computing.
- Negative Sentiment: Analysts have warned that Apple’s insulation from macroeconomic and competitive headwinds is fading. With shares trading at a high earnings multiple, investors may be less tolerant of slower growth, regulatory pressure and delays in AI products. Apple’s Immunity to Headwinds Is Fading
- Negative Sentiment: Reports that Apple is quietly shifting attention toward China add geopolitical and demand risk, while its substantial tax settlement and filings highlighting large profits routed through Ireland could renew regulatory scrutiny.
- Negative Sentiment: Senior Vice President Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares under a prearranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The transaction is relatively small and does not necessarily signal a change in fundamentals, but it provides a modest negative headline.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
AAPL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. KGI Securities cut shares of Apple from an "outperform" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $315.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, June 22nd. HSBC upgraded Apple from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $260.00 to $366.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Apple from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday. They set an "overweight" rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Apple has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $330.53.
Get Our Latest Report on AAPL
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.49, for a total value of $442,478.11. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 38,668 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,890,023.32. This trade represents a 3.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total value of $34,236.24. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,425,754.82. This trade represents a 0.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,994 shares of company stock worth $919,567. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.
Apple Stock Performance
Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $309.35 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $224.69 and a 12-month high of $344.57. The company's 50 day moving average price is $310.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $287.04. The firm has a market cap of $4.51 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.48, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $109.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $109.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 135.46%. Apple's revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.57 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current year.
Apple Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.39%.
Apple Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
See Also
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.
Continue following MarketBeat
Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.
Before you consider Apple, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Apple wasn't on the list.
While Apple currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
Tesla, Nvidia, and Google helped shape the last era of market growth, but the next wave could come from a new group of companies. Inside this report, you’ll find 7 stocks that could play a major role in the next tech-driven market boom.
Get This Free Report
