Draper Asset Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Draper Asset Management increased its Apple stake by 40.8% in the fourth quarter, buying 36,223 more shares and bringing its total to 125,005 shares valued at about $33.98 million. Apple is now the firm’s largest holding, representing 17.9% of its portfolio.
• Several major analysts remain bullish on Apple, with recent price targets ranging from $305.74 consensus to as high as $400. Commentary highlighted AI as a potential growth catalyst, while reports of a preliminary chip-making deal with Intel also supported sentiment.
• Apple reported strong recent results, including Q2 EPS of $2.01 versus estimates of $1.95 and revenue of $111.18 billion, up 16.6% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.27 per share, though executives Tim Cook and Kevan Parekh both sold shares during the period.

Draper Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 40.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 125,005 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 36,223 shares during the period. Apple accounts for 17.9% of Draper Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its biggest position. Draper Asset Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $33,984,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at $38,942,255,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the 1st quarter valued at $17,472,482,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Apple by 20,464.8% in the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27,069,029 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $5,553,753,000 after acquiring an additional 26,937,401 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Apple by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $42,918,365,000 after acquiring an additional 20,079,472 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Apple by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 104,706,358 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $26,220,566,000 after acquiring an additional 13,137,968 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush lifted Apple’s price target to $400 and said AI could drive a major growth wave for AAPL. Apple price target boosted by Wedbush on AI monetization expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple reached a preliminary chip-making deal with Intel boosted confidence in Apple’s manufacturing strategy and supply chain flexibility. Apple, Intel Have Reached Preliminary Chip-Making Agreement
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see WWDC as a potential inflection point, with upcoming AI-related software features seen as a possible catalyst for Apple’s next leg higher. Apple’s biggest bull is now calling for a 37% stock jump
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple remains near its recent highs after strong quarterly results, keeping investor expectations elevated ahead of the next catalyst. Dow Jones Futures: Market At Highs With Iran, Trump-Xi Summit In Focus; Apple, Nvidia, Boeing In Buy Areas
• Negative Sentiment: Apple also faces ongoing legal and regulatory noise, including a Siri settlement and App Store antitrust disputes, which could weigh on sentiment if they escalate. Apple promised a smarter Siri, but a lawsuit says it didn’t deliver—and you can get up to $95 back

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $310.00 price target (up from $300.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Apple from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Maxim Group raised Apple from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $330.00 price objective on Apple in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Stephens set a $315.00 price objective on Apple in a report on Monday, January 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $305.74.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL opened at $293.25 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $4.31 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.06. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $193.46 and a 52-week high of $294.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.07. The business's fifty day moving average is $261.85 and its 200-day moving average is $266.04.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $111.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.46 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.Apple's quarterly revenue was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.65 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple's payout ratio is currently 12.58%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 3,280,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $833,980,668.14. This represents a 1.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $421,850.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,675,650. This trade represents a 10.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 96,485 shares of company stock valued at $24,594,845. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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