Equita Financial Network Inc. Buys 4,774 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Equita Financial Network increased its Apple stake by 132% in the first quarter, buying 4,774 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 8,390 shares worth about $2.13 million.
• Apple’s latest quarterly results beat expectations, with EPS of $2.01 versus $1.95 expected and revenue of $111.18 billion, up 16.6% from a year ago.
• The stock has drawn mixed signals from Wall Street and insiders: analysts’ consensus remains Moderate Buy with an average target of $314.85, while Apple also recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.27 per share.

Equita Financial Network Inc. boosted its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 132.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,390 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after purchasing an additional 4,774 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises approximately 0.7% of Equita Financial Network Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Equita Financial Network Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $2,129,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. now owns 9,898 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $2,520,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. WESPAC Advisors LLC increased its stake in Apple by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. WESPAC Advisors LLC now owns 12,326 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,351,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Interactive Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Apple by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Interactive Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,051 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $286,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC raised its position in Apple by 2.0% during the first quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC now owns 2,029 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $515,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Orion Investment Co raised its position in Apple by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Orion Investment Co now owns 14,354 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,902,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of Apple stock opened at $315.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $201.50 and a one year high of $317.40. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $299.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $275.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.63 trillion, a P/E ratio of 38.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $421,850.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,675,650. This trade represents a 10.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% 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 have sold a total of 2,924 shares of company stock valued at $825,546 in the last three months. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AAPL. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price objective on Apple from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. BNP Paribas Exane raised Apple from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, April 17th. Barclays restated an "underweight" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, June 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $314.85.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s new lawsuit against OpenAI could help protect its hardware roadmap and reinforce its control over proprietary technology, which may support its long-term competitive position. Reuters: Apple sues OpenAI, two former employees for trade secrets theft
• Positive Sentiment: Recent headlines around Apple’s expanded multi-year chip deal with Broadcom continue to boost sentiment, since the agreement strengthens Apple’s supply chain, supports U.S. manufacturing, and deepens its custom silicon strategy. Yahoo Finance: Apple Secures Largest Ever US Chip Deal With Broadcom For $30 Billion
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple was also named among approved U.S. companies eligible for license-free exports under eased UAE trade rules, which is supportive for international operations but not clearly a near-term stock catalyst. Quiver Quant: U.S. eases export controls on UAE
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no meaningful change, suggesting today’s move is being driven more by news flow than by a shift in bearish positioning.
• Negative Sentiment: The OpenAI lawsuit also highlights that Apple’s relationship with a major AI player has soured, adding uncertainty around future AI partnerships and potentially distracting management with litigation. Financial Times: Apple sues OpenAI, alleging it stole top-secret information

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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