JLB & Associates Inc. Acquires New Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• JLB & Associates acquired 123,528 Apple shares worth approximately $35.7 million in the second quarter, making Apple its fourth-largest holding at 4.8% of the portfolio.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 67.73% of Apple, with major firms including Vanguard, Nuveen, Amundi, Fisher Asset Management and Dimensional Fund Advisors increasing their positions.
• Apple reported quarterly EPS of $2.02 and revenue of $109.42 billion, both above analyst expectations, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $338.80.

JLB & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 123,528 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $35,744,000. Apple makes up 4.8% of JLB & Associates Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in 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. Nuveen LLC raised its position in Apple by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 75,000,920 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $20,389,750,000 after purchasing an additional 2,725,121 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 23.2% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 73,082,616 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $18,547,637,000 after buying an additional 13,780,080 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 55,146,752 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $14,992,196,000 after buying an additional 704,293 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Apple by 1.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 58,554,032 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $14,858,200,000 after buying an additional 979,832 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $332.41 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $319.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $293.88. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $236.65 and a twelve month high of $344.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a market capitalization of $4.85 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.08.

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

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Apple's payout ratio is 12.39%.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,438 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $317.23, for a total value of $456,176.74. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 34,352 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,897,484.96. The trade was a 4.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders sold a total of 7,194 shares of company stock worth $2,245,142 in the last 90 days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Reports say Apple is developing enterprise AI servers using its upcoming M8 Ultra chips and is discussing NVIDIA’s NVLink networking technology. The project, potentially launching around 2029, could create a new hardware market, reduce reliance on third-party cloud providers, and help protect Services margins as AI usage grows. Apple Talks to Nvidia About NVLink for Its Own AI Server
• Positive Sentiment: The foldable iPhone Duo and higher-priced Pro models remain major catalysts for revenue and upgrade activity. TD Cowen reportedly set a $400 price target, while Citi survey data points to shorter smartphone replacement cycles and possible Apple market-share gains. Apple Stock Surges After Its Biggest Product Launch in Years
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains favorable: JPMorgan reiterated its Buy rating, and Morgan Stanley is reportedly bullish on Apple’s new offerings. Apple’s Emmy success and continued ecosystem expansion also reinforce the long-term Services and brand story. Apple's Buy Rating Reiterated at JPMorgan
• Neutral Sentiment: The redesigned Siri and iOS 27 introduce broader AI capabilities, but the rollout is initially limited by beta labeling, language and regional restrictions, waitlists, and reports of slow response times. This makes the AI opportunity meaningful but its near-term financial impact uncertain. Apple Falls as Siri AI Arrives Behind a Beta Label
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts describe early iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max preorders as lukewarm, potentially indicating that customers are delaying purchases for the foldable Duo. Weak Pro demand could pressure the current iPhone cycle if Duo demand does not offset it. iPhone 18 Pro Demand Is Already a Problem for Apple Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are also monitoring slipping margins and an Indian consumer-regulator investigation into Apple’s software warranty and repair practices. Regulatory costs or changes to repair policies could weigh on cash flow and profitability. Indian Consumer Regulator Escalates Probe Into Apple’s Software Warranty Terms

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. CICC Research upped their target price on shares of Apple from $310.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Apple from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. Moffett Nathanson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $304.00 price objective (up from $270.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, August 17th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $338.80.

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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