NS Partners Ltd Sells 15,191 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• NS Partners Ltd. reduced its Apple stake by 2.8%, selling 15,191 shares in the second quarter but retaining 518,312 shares valued at approximately $150 million. Apple remains the firm’s third-largest holding, representing 6.4% of its portfolio.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with Apple carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $340.02. The company also reported quarterly revenue growth of 16.4% and earnings that exceeded expectations.
• Apple faces both catalysts and risks: new product launches and security features may support growth, while rising component costs, potential AI-driven disruption to the App Store, and a $5.7 billion patent verdict could pressure margins and valuation.

NS Partners Ltd lessened its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 518,312 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 15,191 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 6.4% of NS Partners Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. NS Partners Ltd's holdings in Apple were worth $149,979,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Prospect Hill Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at about $146,370,000. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple during the second quarter worth about $168,646,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the second quarter worth approximately $482,388,000. Satovsky Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the second quarter worth approximately $16,064,000. Finally, Saranac Partners Ltd bought a new stake in Apple in the second quarter valued at approximately $9,513,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $336.18, for a total value of $806,495.82. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 41,992 shares in the company, valued at $14,116,870.56. This represents a 5.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 13,430 shares of company stock worth $4,342,255. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Moffett Nathanson restated a "neutral" rating and set a $304.00 price target (up from $270.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed an "underperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $325.00 to $375.00 in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $303.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $340.02.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple is launching new safeguards designed to protect its devices from probing AI agents. The move may strengthen user trust and help preserve Apple’s security-focused ecosystem as agentic AI becomes more prominent. Apple Launches New Safeguards Against AI Agents
• Positive Sentiment: The fall product cycle remains a near-term tailwind. Morgan Stanley modestly raised its revenue forecast after Apple’s launches, while Counterpoint reportedly expects about 6 million sales of the $1,999 foldable iPhone Duo this year. New Apple Watch health features and potential smart-home products could also broaden the company’s ecosystem. Apple’s Fall Product Cycle Could Support Revenue Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley maintained an Overweight rating but lowered its price target to $355 from $360. Higher memory and component costs, along with possible iPhone pricing pressure, are offsetting much of the expected product-revenue benefit. Morgan Stanley Adjusts Price Target on Apple
• Negative Sentiment: A jury’s $5.7 billion patent verdict against Apple has raised concerns about potential ongoing royalties and pressure on hardware margins. Apple’s $5.7 Billion Patent Verdict Raises a Bigger Royalty Question
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain worried that AI agents from rivals such as Meta could bypass the App Store and weaken Apple’s high-margin services business. Analysts also see limited upside after Apple’s strong run and its relatively rich valuation.
• Negative Sentiment: Senior Vice President Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares valued at approximately $806,496, reducing her direct holdings by 5.4%. The transaction is small relative to her remaining stake but adds modest insider-selling pressure. Apple Insider Transaction Filing

Apple Trading Up 1.0%

AAPL opened at $333.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.93. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $243.42 and a fifty-two week high of $345.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.87 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.07. The company's 50-day moving average is $322.16 and its 200 day moving average is $300.01.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

About Apple

Apple Inc is a technology company that designs, develops and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its best-known products include the iPhone smartphone, Mac personal computers, iPad tablets, Apple Watch, AirPods and other accessories. The company also develops operating systems and software platforms, including iOS, macOS, iPadOS, watchOS and visionOS.

Apple's services business includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, Apple Fitness+ and iCloud.

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