Fifth Third Securities Inc. Purchases 2,007 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Fifth Third Securities opened a new Apple position, buying 2,007 shares worth approximately $669,000 in the third quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 67.73% of Apple shares.
• Apple beat quarterly estimates, reporting earnings of $2.10 per share and revenue of $114.48 billion; revenue rose 11.7% year over year.
• Analysts give Apple a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with an average price target of $343.74. The article also notes potential headwinds from rising memory costs and supply constraints.

Fifth Third Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 2,007 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $669,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Variant Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in Apple by 1.1% during the third quarter. Variant Private Wealth LLC now owns 34,539 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $11,502,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares during the last quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC now owns 51,290 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $17,081,000 after buying an additional 2,447 shares during the last quarter. Bell Bank increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bell Bank now owns 57,778 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $19,241,000 after buying an additional 631 shares during the last quarter. Innova Wealth Partners increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Innova Wealth Partners now owns 9,116 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $3,036,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 33,844 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $11,271,000 after buying an additional 1,556 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $350.00 price objective (up from $310.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Apple from $360.00 to $355.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Maxim Group raised their price target on Apple from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $340.00 price objective on Apple and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have given a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $343.74.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO John Ternus sold 25,412 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.94, for a total transaction of $8,460,671.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 59,567 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,832,236.98. This represents a 29.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 46,389 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.42, for a total transaction of $15,467,020.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares in the company, valued at $45,615,190.20. This represents a 25.32% 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. Insiders sold 291,651 shares of company stock valued at $97,082,537 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $342.37 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $336.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $298.50. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.42 and a 12-month high of $355.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.98 trillion, a P/E ratio of 38.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.11. Apple had a return on equity of 125.35% and a net margin of 27.60%. The company had revenue of $114.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $113.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.85 EPS. Apple's revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 9.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 12th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 12th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.04%.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple beat fiscal fourth-quarter earnings and revenue estimates, with solid iPhone and Mac demand. Apple also says more apps optimized for its new foldable iPhone are coming, potentially improving the product’s appeal. Apple earnings beat
• Positive Sentiment: Apple has held up better than many chipmakers amid the AI-stock sell-off, and Bernstein raised its price target to $380 while maintaining a Buy rating. This relative strength may support investor sentiment. Apple holds up amid market weakness
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple is reportedly seeking about $7.5 billion through a bond offering. The financing provides flexibility, though the reports do not specify its use. The company is also limiting some employees’ AI-tool budgets, a move that could help control costs but raises questions about its internal AI investment. Apple bond sale report
• Negative Sentiment: Management warned of unprecedented memory-chip costs and supply constraints heading into the holiday quarter, putting gross margins at risk despite healthy demand. Investors are also weighing slower Services growth and Apple’s premium valuation. Memory costs and supply constraints

Apple Company 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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