Hixon Zuercher LLC Has $7.86 Million Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Hixon Zuercher LLC cut its Apple stake by 18.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 6,370 shares and ending with 28,899 shares worth about $7.86 million.
• Apple reported strong fiscal Q2 results, with EPS of $2.01 beating estimates and revenue of $111.18 billion, up 16.6% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.27 per share, while analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $305.74.

Hixon Zuercher LLC trimmed its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 18.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 28,899 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 6,370 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 2.4% of Hixon Zuercher LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Hixon Zuercher LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $7,856,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. raised its position in Apple by 0.4% during the third quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. now owns 9,898 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,520,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. WESPAC Advisors LLC raised its position in Apple by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. WESPAC Advisors LLC now owns 12,326 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,351,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. American Alpha Advisors LLC raised its position in Apple by 3.7% during the third quarter. American Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 1,151 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $293,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Seven Springs Wealth Group LLC raised its position in Apple by 0.3% during the third quarter. Seven Springs Wealth Group LLC now owns 15,451 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,934,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avant Capital LLC raised its position in Apple by 0.9% during the third quarter. Avant Capital LLC now owns 4,814 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $1,226,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush lifted Apple’s price target to $400 and said AI could drive a major growth wave for AAPL. Apple price target boosted by Wedbush on AI monetization expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple reached a preliminary chip-making deal with Intel boosted confidence in Apple’s manufacturing strategy and supply chain flexibility. Apple, Intel Have Reached Preliminary Chip-Making Agreement
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see WWDC as a potential inflection point, with upcoming AI-related software features seen as a possible catalyst for Apple’s next leg higher. Apple’s biggest bull is now calling for a 37% stock jump
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple remains near its recent highs after strong quarterly results, keeping investor expectations elevated ahead of the next catalyst. Dow Jones Futures: Market At Highs With Iran, Trump-Xi Summit In Focus; Apple, Nvidia, Boeing In Buy Areas
• Negative Sentiment: Apple also faces ongoing legal and regulatory noise, including a Siri settlement and App Store antitrust disputes, which could weigh on sentiment if they escalate. Apple promised a smarter Siri, but a lawsuit says it didn’t deliver—and you can get up to $95 back

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AAPL. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price objective on shares of Apple from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Moffett Nathanson raised their price objective on shares of Apple from $241.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. UBS Group set a $296.00 price objective on shares of Apple and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $305.74.

Apple Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $293.25 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $193.46 and a 12 month high of $294.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The business's 50 day moving average is $261.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $266.04. The company has a market cap of $4.31 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.06.

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

Apple Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 13.06%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total value of $16,511,984.27. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $833,980,668.14. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total transaction of $7,661,010.70. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,934,433.50. The trade was a 17.99% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 96,485 shares of company stock worth $24,594,845. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

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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