Lbp Am Sa Grows Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Lbp Am Sa increased its Apple stake by 10.8% in the fourth quarter, buying 143,614 more shares and bringing its holdings to 1,471,769 shares worth about $400.1 million. Apple is now the fund’s fourth-largest position and makes up roughly 4.6% of its portfolio.
• Apple reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $2.01 versus the $1.95 estimate and revenue of $111.18 billion, above expectations. Revenue rose 16.6% year over year, reinforcing investor confidence.
• Sentiment around Apple remains broadly positive, with analysts lifting price targets and highlighting potential AI-related catalysts, while the company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.27 per share. However, insiders have recently sold shares, and legal/regulatory issues remain a possible headwind.

Lbp Am Sa boosted its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 10.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,471,769 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after buying an additional 143,614 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 4.6% of Lbp Am Sa's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Lbp Am Sa's holdings in Apple were worth $400,115,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Overbrook Management Corp raised its position in shares of Apple by 57.4% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its stake in Apple by 48.4% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 1,426,605 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $363,256,000 after buying an additional 465,393 shares during the period. Tufton Capital Management lifted its stake in Apple by 4.3% in the third quarter. Tufton Capital Management now owns 100,130 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $25,496,000 after buying an additional 4,157 shares during the period. Montis Financial LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 15.8% in the third quarter. Montis Financial LLC now owns 77,919 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $19,841,000 after buying an additional 10,640 shares during the period. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated lifted its stake in Apple by 21.1% in the third quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 120,674 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $30,727,000 after buying an additional 21,054 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Apple

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $421,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,366 shares in the company, valued at $3,675,650. This represents a 10.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total value of $7,661,010.70. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at $34,934,433.50. This trade represents a 17.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 96,485 shares of company stock worth $24,594,845 over the last ninety days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Apple Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of Apple stock opened at $293.25 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $193.46 and a 1 year high of $294.76. The business has a 50-day moving average of $261.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $266.04. The company has a market capitalization of $4.31 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.65 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on AAPL. Rosenblatt Securities increased their target price on Apple from $268.00 to $276.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. KeyCorp reissued a "sector weight" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $330.00 target price on Apple in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Maxim Group raised Apple from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $325.00 target price on Apple in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. One equities research 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 issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $305.74.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AAPL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.