Hardy Reed LLC Invests $38.97 Million in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Hardy Reed LLC acquired 134,673 Apple shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $38.97 million. The position represents about 2.5% of the firm’s holdings and is its seventh-largest investment.
• Institutional investors own 67.73% of Apple, while insiders own just 0.06%; insiders sold approximately $2.28 million of stock over the past 90 days, including a $456,000 sale by SVP Jennifer Newstead.
• Apple recently exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, but investors remain focused on the growth potential of its new foldable iPhone versus risks from elevated valuation, rising component costs, margin pressure and intense competition.

Hardy Reed LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 134,673 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $38,969,000. Apple accounts for approximately 2.5% of Hardy Reed LLC's holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% in the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth $69,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at about $65,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at about $76,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $317.01, for a total value of $456,177.39. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 35,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,345,787.90. This represents a 3.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $34,236.24. Following the transaction, 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. 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 a total of 7,310 shares of company stock worth $2,279,378 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Up 1.7%

Apple stock opened at $332.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.93. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $229.02 and a 1-year high of $344.57. The company has a market cap of $4.85 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.08. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $318.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $292.45.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.39%.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on AAPL. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $365.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Evercore restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Phillip Securities downgraded shares of Apple from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $334.91.

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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