Lawson Kroeker Investment Management Inc. NE Sells 15,242 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Lawson Kroeker Investment Management Inc. NE cut its Apple stake by 84.5%, selling 15,242 shares in the quarter and retaining 2,800 shares valued at about $761,000 per its SEC filing.
• Company insiders executed notable sales on April 2 under Rule 10b5-1 plans — SVP Deirdre O'Brien sold 30,002 shares (~$7.66M) and CEO Tim Cook sold 64,949 shares (~$16.51M) — leaving insiders with roughly 0.06% ownership.
• Market sentiment is largely positive with upgrades and raised price targets (e.g., BNP Paribas to Outperform, BofA higher target), a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target of $301.33, supported by reports of ~20% iPhone shipment growth in China in Q1.

Lawson Kroeker Investment Management Inc. NE cut its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 84.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,800 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 15,242 shares during the quarter. Lawson Kroeker Investment Management Inc. NE's holdings in Apple were worth $761,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AAPL. Overbrook Management Corp boosted its position in shares of Apple by 57.4% during the 4th quarter. Overbrook Management Corp now owns 104,648 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $28,449,000 after acquiring an additional 38,174 shares in the last quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Apple by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 397,834 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $101,301,000 after acquiring an additional 8,446 shares in the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its position in shares of Apple by 48.4% during the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 1,426,605 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $363,256,000 after acquiring an additional 465,393 shares in the last quarter. Tufton Capital Management boosted its position in shares of Apple by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Tufton Capital Management now owns 100,130 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $25,496,000 after acquiring an additional 4,157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors boosted its position in shares of Apple by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 734,485 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $187,022,000 after acquiring an additional 27,445 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Apple News Summary

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $330.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating and issued a $325.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Apple from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $301.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of the firm'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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $34,934,433.50. This trade represents a 17.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, 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 transaction of $16,511,984.27. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,280,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at $833,980,668.14. The trade was a 1.94% 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 company insiders.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of Apple stock opened at $270.23 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $189.81 and a fifty-two week high of $288.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.97 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.11. The company's 50 day moving average price is $259.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $264.11.

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

Apple Announces Dividend

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

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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