Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC Invests $168.65 Million in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Focus Partners Advisor Solutions acquired 582,828 Apple shares worth approximately $168.65 million, making Apple its ninth-largest holding and about 1.4% of its portfolio.
• Institutional investors own approximately 67.73% of Apple’s shares, with several funds recently increasing their positions.
• Wall Street’s consensus rating is “Moderate Buy”, with a target price of $334.91. Apple recently exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $2.02 in EPS and $109.42 billion in revenue.

Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 582,828 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $168,646,000. Apple makes up about 1.4% of Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AAPL. First National Bank of Hutchinson raised its stake in shares of Apple by 24.6% in the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 35,319 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $8,845,000 after purchasing an additional 6,982 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 54,085 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $13,544,000 after buying an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 537,314 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $134,554,000 after buying an additional 69,207 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Apple by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,857 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $16,742,000 after buying an additional 2,695 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE raised its position in Apple by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 50,264 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $12,587,000 after buying an additional 1,155 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AAPL. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, August 17th. They set an "overweight" rating on the stock. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, June 5th. Seaport Research Partners downgraded Apple from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, China Renaissance downgraded Apple from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $280.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $334.91.

Apple Price Performance

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $332.27 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.85 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.00. The business's fifty day moving average is $318.20 and its 200 day moving average is $292.63. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $229.02 and a fifty-two week high of $344.57.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%.The business had revenue of $109.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $109.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.57 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th were 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 was Monday, August 10th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.39%.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: iPhone Duo creates a potential new growth cycle. Apple’s $1,999 foldable iPhone, scheduled to arrive October 23, could drive upgrades, deepen ecosystem engagement and add a high-margin premium product category. Some analysts believe foldables could eventually account for 10% to 20% of iPhone revenue. How Wall Street viewed Apple's foldable iPhone
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see renewed hardware momentum. Alongside the Duo, Apple unveiled the iPhone 18 Pro lineup, new Apple Watch models, AirPods 5 and expanded Siri AI features. TD Cowen maintained a Buy rating with a $400 target, supporting the bullish reaction. TD Cowen reiterates Buy rating
• Positive Sentiment: Carrier promotions could reduce sticker-price resistance. T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon are offering installment and trade-in incentives for the expensive Duo, potentially broadening access without an immediate industrywide price war. Wireless carrier promotions
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street remains divided. Bank of America retained a Buy rating but lowered its price target to $370, while Rosenblatt kept a Neutral rating and $303 target. The debate centers on Duo demand, supply constraints, valuation and the durability of the upgrade cycle.
• Negative Sentiment: Margin pressure remains the main risk. Apple raised iPhone Pro prices by $100, but memory and other component costs are rising rapidly. Management has already guided to lower gross margins, raising concerns that pricing may not fully offset higher costs. Apple margin pressure from memory costs
• Negative Sentiment: Premium valuation and competition limit upside. Apple trades near the upper end of its historical earnings multiple, while Huawei, Xiaomi and Samsung remain strong competitors in China and the foldable market.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling is a modest cautionary signal. SVP Jennifer Newstead sold approximately $456,000 of stock, reducing her direct holdings by about 4%, although she retains a substantial position.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the transaction, the insider owned 38,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% 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, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,438 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $317.23, for a total transaction of $456,176.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 34,352 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,897,484.96. The trade was a 4.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 7,310 shares of company stock valued at $2,279,378 over the last three months. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Apple Profile

Apple Inc is a technology company that designs, develops and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its principal products include the iPhone, Mac computers, iPad tablets, Apple Watch, AirPods and other accessories. The company also develops operating systems and applications that support its hardware products.

Apple's services business includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV, Apple Arcade, Apple Fitness+, Apple News+, Apple Pay and iCloud. These services provide digital content, payments, cloud storage and subscription offerings across the company's ecosystem of devices.

Founded in 1976, Apple is headquartered in Cupertino, California, and serves consumers, businesses, educational institutions and government customers worldwide.

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