M3 Wealth Management LLC Makes New Investment in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• M3 Wealth Management initiated a $4.84 million Apple position by purchasing 16,708 shares during the second quarter, making Apple approximately 3.1% of its portfolio and its ninth-largest holding.
• Apple reported quarterly EPS of $2.02 versus the $1.89 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 16.4% year over year to $109.42 billion. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company, and analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with a $334.91 target price.
• Investors are weighing potential growth from Apple’s foldable iPhone and broader hardware lineup against margin pressure, premium valuation, competition and modest insider selling.

M3 Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 16,708 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $4,835,000. Apple makes up about 3.1% of M3 Wealth Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 9th largest position.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Apple by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $387,749,545,000 after acquiring an additional 26,856,752 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 604,056,505 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $164,218,801,000 after buying an additional 6,555,392 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 358,032,517 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $97,031,587,000 after purchasing an additional 1,866,103 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of Apple by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 230,483,035 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $62,659,118,000 after acquiring an additional 1,379,651 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at $52,266,468,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $332.27 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.85 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.08. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $229.02 and a twelve month high of $344.57. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $318.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $292.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $109.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.57 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total value of $34,236.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 38,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,425,754.82. This represents a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,438 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $317.23, for a total value of $456,176.74. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 7,310 shares of company stock worth $2,279,378. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the company. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. HSBC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $366.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Raymond James Financial restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $350.00 target price (up from $310.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Apple in a research report on Monday, August 17th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $334.91.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: iPhone Duo creates a potential new growth cycle. Apple’s $1,999 foldable iPhone, scheduled to arrive October 23, could drive upgrades, deepen ecosystem engagement and add a high-margin premium product category. Some analysts believe foldables could eventually account for 10% to 20% of iPhone revenue. How Wall Street viewed Apple's foldable iPhone
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see renewed hardware momentum. Alongside the Duo, Apple unveiled the iPhone 18 Pro lineup, new Apple Watch models, AirPods 5 and expanded Siri AI features. TD Cowen maintained a Buy rating with a $400 target, supporting the bullish reaction. TD Cowen reiterates Buy rating
• Positive Sentiment: Carrier promotions could reduce sticker-price resistance. T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon are offering installment and trade-in incentives for the expensive Duo, potentially broadening access without an immediate industrywide price war. Wireless carrier promotions
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street remains divided. Bank of America retained a Buy rating but lowered its price target to $370, while Rosenblatt kept a Neutral rating and $303 target. The debate centers on Duo demand, supply constraints, valuation and the durability of the upgrade cycle.
• Negative Sentiment: Margin pressure remains the main risk. Apple raised iPhone Pro prices by $100, but memory and other component costs are rising rapidly. Management has already guided to lower gross margins, raising concerns that pricing may not fully offset higher costs. Apple margin pressure from memory costs
• Negative Sentiment: Premium valuation and competition limit upside. Apple trades near the upper end of its historical earnings multiple, while Huawei, Xiaomi and Samsung remain strong competitors in China and the foldable market.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling is a modest cautionary signal. SVP Jennifer Newstead sold approximately $456,000 of stock, reducing her direct holdings by about 4%, although she retains a substantial position.

About Apple

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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