Howard Capital Management Group LLC Decreases Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Howard Capital Management Group trimmed its Apple stake by 2.6% in Q4, selling 10,977 shares and finishing the period with 418,167 shares worth $113.68 million, making Apple about 7.2% of the firm's holdings and its second-largest position.
• Insider selling: CEO Tim Cook sold 64,949 shares (~$16.5M) and SVP Deirdre O'Brien sold 30,002 shares (~$7.66M) on April 2 under pre‑arranged Rule 10b5‑1 plans, reducing their positions by roughly 1.94% and 17.99% respectively.
• Analyst sentiment and market drivers: The consensus rating is a "Moderate Buy" with a $301.33 average target after several upgrades and price‑target increases, supported by positives like a ~20% jump in iPhone shipments in China and Bank of America's $325 target citing M5/edge‑AI catalysts.

Howard Capital Management Group LLC lessened its position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 418,167 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 10,977 shares during the period. Apple makes up about 7.2% of Howard Capital Management Group LLC's holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Howard Capital Management Group LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $113,683,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AAPL. Isthmus Partners LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 97,177 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 5,808 shares during the period. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 110.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 1,800.0% during 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 period. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Finally, 49 Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter. 49 Wealth Management LLC now owns 298,920 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 40,543 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $833,980,668.14. This represents a 1.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were 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 directly owned 136,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at $34,934,433.50. This trade represents 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. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AAPL. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Apple from $320.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Maxim Group raised shares of Apple from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $301.33.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Counterpoint/Reuters data show iPhone shipments in China jumped ~20% in Q1 — far outpacing the market and supporting Apple’s revenue and share‑gain narrative in its largest smartphone market. Apple's iPhone shipments in China surge 20% in Q1, data shows
• Positive Sentiment: BNP Paribas upgraded AAPL to Outperform and raised its price target (citing supply‑chain strength and a premium mix benefit as memory prices rise), which helped lift sentiment and buy‑side interest. Apple Upgraded To Outperform As BNP Sees Share Gains From Memory Surge
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its price target and highlighted Apple’s M5/edge‑AI roadmap as a meaningful product/AI catalyst — reinforcing the case for multiple expansion if product momentum continues. Bank of America Increases Apple Price Target to $325
• Neutral Sentiment: Heavy call‑option activity and structured trades around Apple’s April 30 earnings show traders positioning for a big move; options can amplify returns but also add short‑term volatility risk. Apple Stock Trade Risk Around Earnings Offers A 27% Reward
• Neutral Sentiment: Corporate moves — a leadership transition in Wearables/Home and Project Glasswing (an AI security alliance) — underline long‑term product and services initiatives but are unlikely to move near‑term earnings materially. Apple’s Wearables Shakeup And AI Security Push Shape Long Term Story
• Negative Sentiment: Rising memory and component costs remain a two‑edged sword — while some analysts argue it improves Apple’s competitive positioning, higher input prices can compress margins if the premium mix or pricing power softens. Apple Upgrade Hinges on Cost Advantage Shift
• Negative Sentiment: TSMC’s strong AI‑driven results and supply comments briefly pressured AAPL aftermarket moves (market reads TSMC commentary as mixed signal for margins/supply dynamics). Also expect volatility into the April 30 earnings print. TSMC’s Results Weren’t a Great Sign for Apple

Apple Price Performance

Shares of Apple stock opened at $270.23 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $189.81 and a 52-week high of $288.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.97 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a fifty day moving average of $259.72 and a 200-day moving average of $264.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.17. Apple had a net margin of 27.04% and a return on equity of 159.94%. The company had revenue of $143.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $138.25 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.40 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 13.15%.

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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