Forum Financial Management LP Has $65.24 Million Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Forum Financial Management LP cut its Apple stake by 21.1% in the first quarter, selling 68,715 shares and leaving it with 257,073 shares valued at about $65.24 million.
• Apple continues to draw heavy institutional interest, with major holders like Vanguard and several new large positions reported; overall, institutional investors own 67.73% of the company.
• Wall Street sentiment remains constructive: analysts currently rate Apple a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $314.85, while the stock recently traded near its 52-week high after beating earnings and raising its dividend.

Forum Financial Management LP decreased its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 21.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 257,073 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 68,715 shares during the period. Apple makes up 0.9% of Forum Financial Management LP's holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Forum Financial Management LP's holdings in Apple were worth $65,243,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at about $52,266,468,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Apple in the 1st quarter worth about $17,472,482,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. boosted its holdings in Apple by 890.7% in the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 41,984,810 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $11,413,990,000 after purchasing an additional 37,746,784 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 26,937,401 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Apple by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $387,749,545,000 after purchasing an additional 26,856,752 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $276.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Tigress Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and set a $375.00 price target (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price objective on Apple from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. KeyCorp reaffirmed a "sector weight" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $314.85.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of Apple stock opened at $316.16 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $298.65 and a 200-day moving average of $274.97. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $201.50 and a 1-year high of $317.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a market cap of $4.64 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $421,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,366 shares in the company, valued at $3,675,650. This represents a 10.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total value of $34,236.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,425,754.82. This trade represents a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,924 shares of company stock worth $825,546. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple announced a multiyear partnership with Broadcom worth more than $30 billion to design and produce U.S.-made custom silicon and wireless chips, its largest domestic manufacturing commitment to date. The deal improves supply-chain resiliency and supports future product cycles. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan said Apple’s recent price increases for Mac and iPad, and any possible iPhone hikes, are unlikely to significantly hurt demand, and it raised its price target while reiterating a Buy rating. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: UBS said App Store data points to roughly 3% growth in Apple’s June quarter, signaling that services revenue remains resilient even as U.S. revenue softens somewhat. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several pieces framed Apple as a potential leader in a broader “Magnificent Seven” rebound, but these were mostly market commentary rather than company-specific catalysts. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: An EU court rejected Apple’s challenge to Digital Markets Act gatekeeper rules, leaving the company exposed to tighter App Store and iOS antitrust obligations in Europe. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Hedgeye reportedly added Apple as a new short idea, which may be adding some caution around the stock’s near-term valuation after a strong run. Article Title

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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