McDonough Capital Management Inc Acquires 178,379 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• McDonough Capital Management acquired 178,379 Apple shares in the second quarter, worth approximately $21.2 million. Apple now represents 10.6% of the firm’s portfolio and is its fourth-largest holding.
• Institutional investors own approximately 67.73% of Apple’s stock, while several other investment firms modestly increased their positions.
• Analysts maintain a broadly positive outlook, with Apple holding a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $340.14, though elevated valuation, rising component costs, AI competition and legal issues remain risks.

McDonough Capital Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 178,379 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $21,197,000. Apple comprises approximately 10.6% of McDonough Capital Management Inc's portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of AAPL. Sterling Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Apple by 0.3% during the second quarter. Sterling Wealth Management Inc. now owns 11,579 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $3,351,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Evansbrook LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Evansbrook LLC now owns 8,095 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,054,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. JMG Financial Group Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. JMG Financial Group Ltd. now owns 5,102 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $1,295,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Advocate Investing Services LLC raised its position in shares of Apple by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Advocate Investing Services LLC now owns 7,847 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $2,271,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Finally, Interactive Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Apple by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Interactive Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,051 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $286,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: iPhone 18 demand remains encouraging. Long lines in India and strong interest in the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max suggest Apple’s premium pricing is holding up in an important growth market. Evercore ISI raised its price target to $380 from $365 while maintaining an outperform rating. Apple iPhone demand in India
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum and technical positioning remain supportive. AAPL has gained roughly 10% over the past month and is approaching a potential buy point, helping sustain investor interest. Bank of America and JPMorgan have reiterated bullish ratings, while several analysts maintain targets above the current trading range. Apple stock approaches buy point
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple is expanding its product ecosystem. The company plans a refreshed HomePod mini, while reports suggest it may develop its own AI server chips. These initiatives could support future ecosystem engagement and infrastructure efficiency, but they are not yet material earnings drivers. Apple to release new HomePod mini
• Negative Sentiment: Rising component costs could pressure margins. Bernstein warned that surging memory and other smartphone component costs may weigh on gross margins and earnings in the December quarter, particularly as Apple introduces more expensive iPhones. Apple’s expensive new iPhones and margins
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and AI execution remain key risks. At nearly $5 trillion in market value and about 38–39 times earnings, Apple requires continued earnings growth to justify its valuation. Analysts argue Alphabet’s Gemini ecosystem and monetization progress currently give it an edge in consumer AI, while Meta’s AI devices add competitive pressure. Alphabet versus Apple in consumer AI
• Negative Sentiment: Legal and product issues add uncertainty. A judge certified a class of payment card issuers in an Apple Pay antitrust lawsuit alleging improper fees. Separately, Apple is preparing a software fix for an iPhone 18 Pro reboot problem. Apple Pay class-action lawsuit

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore set a $380.00 price objective on shares of Apple and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. DA Davidson reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, June 5th. Moffett Nathanson restated a "neutral" rating and set a $304.00 price objective (up from $270.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, China Renaissance downgraded Apple from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $329.00 to $280.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $340.14.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $341.07 on Friday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $321.56 and its 200-day moving average is $297.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.98 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 1.08. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $243.42 and a one year high of $345.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.00.

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

Apple Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Apple

In related news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.06, for a total value of $815,803.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 44,391 shares in the company, valued at $15,095,603.46. This trade represents a 5.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold 11,031 shares of company stock worth $3,535,759 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

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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