Lee Danner & Bass Inc. Trims Stock Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Lee Danner & Bass Inc. decreased its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 220,705 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 4,527 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for 4.3% of Lee Danner & Bass Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Lee Danner & Bass Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $60,001,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Overbrook Management Corp increased 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 valued at $28,449,000 after purchasing an additional 38,174 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 48.4% in 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 buying an additional 465,393 shares during the period. Tufton Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Tufton Capital Management now owns 100,130 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $25,496,000 after buying an additional 4,157 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 7,044,697 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $1,915,172,000 after buying an additional 214,215 shares during the period. Finally, Montis Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 15.8% in the 3rd quarter. Montis Financial LLC now owns 77,919 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $19,841,000 after buying an additional 10,640 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its price target on Apple to $380 from $330 and kept a Buy rating, saying Apple is well positioned to benefit from the emerging “agentic AI” smartphone market and could unlock substantial new revenue from a redesigned Siri and AI features. Apple seen as key beneficiary of emerging agentic AI smartphone market, BofA says
• Positive Sentiment: Other Wall Street coverage echoed that view, with reports saying Apple is hitting all-time highs as investors expect a deeper AI push at WWDC, which could improve sentiment and support further upside. Apple stock hits all-time high as analysts see AI-driven breakout
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts also highlighted strong underlying fundamentals, including record Services revenue and continued strength in iPhone sales, reinforcing the long-term growth case for Apple. Strong Content & Advertising Aids Apple's Services: More Upside Ahead?
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple and Google are pushing back against Canada’s proposed police data-access bill, a regulatory issue that could affect the company’s privacy stance but is not an immediate earnings driver. Apple, Google Blast Canada’s Plan to Expand Police Data Powers
• Negative Sentiment: One potential headwind came from an article noting iPhone 17e sales in Japan have slowed versus its predecessor, which could raise questions about demand in some markets. The Real Reason The iPhone 17e Is Falling Behind Its Predecessor In Japan

Apple Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $308.33 on Wednesday. The business's 50-day moving average is $271.87 and its 200 day moving average is $269.16. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $195.07 and a 1 year high of $311.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.53 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.69 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 earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (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 analyst estimates of $109.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.65 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. This is an increase from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 13.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on AAPL shares. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $330.00 target price (up from $315.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, May 1st. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on Apple from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. KeyCorp reissued a "sector weight" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Maxim Group raised Apple from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Barclays reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $253.00 price target (up from $248.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $310.31.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total value of $369,460.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,226,770. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $421,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 97,759 shares of company stock valued at $24,964,305 over the last three months. Company 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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