Pacific Wealth Management Takes Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Pacific Wealth Management purchased 2,159 Apple shares worth approximately $625,000 in the second quarter, making Apple its eighth-largest holding and about 0.3% of its portfolio.
• Institutional investors own 67.73% of Apple, while Wall Street maintains a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $338.80, despite mixed ratings and targets ranging from $303 to $365.
• Apple reported strong quarterly results, with revenue up 16.4% year over year and EPS beating estimates; however, its premium valuation, regulatory risks and mixed early iPhone preorder signals remain potential concerns.

Pacific Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 2,159 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $625,000. Apple accounts for about 0.3% of Pacific Wealth Management's portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sterling Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Apple by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sterling Wealth Management Inc. now owns 11,579 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,351,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Evansbrook LLC boosted its stake in Apple by 0.4% in the first 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 in the last quarter. JMG Financial Group Ltd. grew its position in Apple by 0.7% in the first quarter. JMG Financial Group Ltd. now owns 5,102 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $1,295,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Advocate Investing Services LLC grew its position in Apple by 0.5% in the second quarter. Advocate Investing Services LLC now owns 7,847 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $2,271,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Interactive Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Apple by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Interactive Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,051 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $286,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAPL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. DZ Bank downgraded shares of Apple from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $310.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Arete Research boosted their target price on shares of Apple from $305.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Apple from $350.00 to $340.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $365.00 price objective on Apple in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a "neutral" rating and set a $303.00 price objective 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 assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $338.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,438 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.19, for a total value of $474,813.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 32,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,867,873.66. This trade represents a 4.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last three months, insiders sold 8,632 shares of company stock worth $2,719,955. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Apple News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America reiterated its Buy rating and set a $370 price target, citing carrier incentives of up to $1,200, a potentially strong iPhone upgrade cycle, capital returns and opportunities for edge AI. Apple’s iPhone Upgrade Cycle Looks Strong As Carrier Incentives Hit $1,200
• Positive Sentiment: Carrier promotions are helping offset higher iPhone 18 Pro prices, supporting expectations for sales despite concerns that consumers could be waiting for Apple’s foldable iPhone Duo. Apple also reportedly gained smartphone market share, even as overall industry shipments declined. Apple iPhone 18 Pro Sales Helped By Carrier Promotions
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple is developing AI servers powered by M8 Ultra chips provided a longer-term growth narrative. The planned infrastructure, potentially using NVIDIA networking technology, could reduce cloud costs, protect Services margins and create an enterprise-server opportunity around 2029. Apple Is Quietly Building an AI Advantage Few Expected
• Positive Sentiment: Apple remains a core Berkshire Hathaway holding, representing more than half of Warren Buffett’s portfolio along with American Express and Alphabet. This reinforces the perception of Apple as a high-quality, cash-generating long-term investment. Warren Buffett Has More Than 50% of His Portfolio in These 3 Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Early iPhone 18 Pro preorder signals are mixed. Some analysts see shorter wait times as a sign of softer demand, while others believe carrier discounts and customers delaying purchases for the foldable model explain the pattern. Bank of America flags surprising iPhone 18 pre-order trend
• Negative Sentiment: Apple’s premium valuation leaves limited room for disappointment, while a $2.7 billion UK lawsuit over app-tracking rules and continuing European scrutiny add regulatory risk. An executive’s stock sale was disclosed, although it was conducted to cover tax withholding on vested equity and is not necessarily a bearish signal. Apple Faces a $2.7 Billion UK Lawsuit

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $337.00 on Friday. 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 Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $236.65 and a fifty-two week high of $344.57. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $319.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $294.40. The company has a market capitalization of $4.92 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.08.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued 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. Apple had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 135.46%. The firm had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders 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 dividend payout ratio is 12.39%.

Apple Profile

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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