Gabelli Funds LLC Lowers Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds reduced its Apple stake by 0.5% in the first quarter, selling 2,143 shares and retaining 421,859 shares valued at approximately $107.1 million. Apple represents about 0.7% of the fund’s portfolio.
• Institutional ownership remains substantial at 67.73%, with major investors including Vanguard, Norges Bank and Nuveen making significant additions or holding large positions.
• Apple recently beat quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, with revenue up 16.4% year over year, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $330.44. Shares opened at $313.33, and the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share.

Gabelli Funds LLC lessened its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 0.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 421,859 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 2,143 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 0.7% of Gabelli Funds LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Gabelli Funds LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $107,064,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Apple during the 4th quarter valued at about $52,266,468,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Apple during the first quarter worth about $17,472,482,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. increased its stake in Apple by 890.7% during the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 41,984,810 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $11,413,990,000 after purchasing an additional 37,746,784 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 20,464.8% in the second 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 holdings in shares of Apple by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $387,749,545,000 after purchasing an additional 26,856,752 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $313.33 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $4.57 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.93, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $309.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $283.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $219.25 and a 12 month high of $344.57.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $109.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%.Apple's quarterly revenue was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.57 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In related news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Planned CEO transition appears orderly. Tim Cook will step down in September and be succeeded by longtime Apple executive John Ternus, a veteran with experience dating back to the Steve Jobs era. Cook’s endorsement and Ternus’ familiarity with Apple’s products may reduce concerns about strategic disruption. Tim Cook Says There’s ‘No Better Person’ to Take Over at Apple
• Positive Sentiment: Core business momentum remains strong. Apple’s latest quarter exceeded earnings and revenue expectations, with revenue up roughly 16% year over year. Broad iPhone, Mac and Services demand continues to support the bullish case. Tim Cook's Last Quarter as CEO Was Apple's Best June Quarter Ever
• Positive Sentiment: App Store monetization is holding up. App Store revenue increased slightly despite a 4% decline in iPhone and iPad downloads, as revenue per download rose 4.7%. This suggests continued pricing and engagement resilience in a key Services business. Apple App Store Revenue Ticks Up Despite Falling Downloads
• Neutral Sentiment: OpenAI is seeking dismissal of Apple’s trade-secrets lawsuit. OpenAI denies misappropriating confidential information related to Apple’s consumer-hardware efforts. The filing does not resolve the dispute, leaving legal and competitive uncertainty in place. OpenAI Seeks Dismissal of Apple's Trade Secrets Lawsuit
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term cost and growth pressures are weighing on sentiment. Rising memory prices, supply constraints and policy risks could pressure margins, while slower Services growth has prompted some firms to downgrade Apple to Hold or Moderate Sell. Apple's Capex Strategy Worked But Other Pressures Are Mounting
• Negative Sentiment: Competition in emerging hardware is increasing. Samsung reported a 30% rise in foldable-device preorders, highlighting a market Apple has yet to enter. Investors may view future Apple foldables as an opportunity, but execution and timing remain uncertain. Samsung Foldable Preorders Jump 30%

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AAPL shares. Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $245.00 target price (down from $253.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 31st. KeyCorp reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. DA Davidson restated a "neutral" rating and set a $270.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $365.00 price target on Apple in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, June 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $330.44.

Apple 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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