Payne Capital LLC Makes New Investment in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Payne Capital LLC bought a new stake in Apple, acquiring 11,825 shares worth about $3.01 million in Q3, making Apple 3.1% of its holdings and the firm's ninth-largest position.
• Other large institutions also adjusted positions—Norges Bank and Nuveen opened very large stakes (reported at roughly $38.9B and $17.5B respectively) and Northern Trust now holds about 171.4 million shares—leaving institutional ownership at about 67.73%.
• Apple beat expectations with Q EPS of $2.84 vs. $2.67 consensus and revenue of $143.76 billion (up 15.7% YoY), announced a $0.26 quarterly dividend (0.4% yield), and has a 52-week range of $169.21–$288.62.

Payne Capital LLC bought a new stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 11,825 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $3,011,000. Apple comprises 3.1% of Payne Capital LLC's holdings, making the stock its 9th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the second quarter valued at approximately $38,942,255,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the 1st quarter valued at about $17,472,482,000. PKS Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 98,917.0% in the second quarter. PKS Advisory Services LLC now owns 57,956,620 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $12,106,000 after purchasing an additional 57,898,088 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 20,464.8% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27,069,029 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $5,553,753,000 after purchasing an additional 26,937,401 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Apple by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $42,918,365,000 after purchasing an additional 20,079,472 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $262.52 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $3.85 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $288.62. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $264.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $260.06.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $143.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $138.25 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 159.94% and a net margin of 27.04%.Apple's revenue was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.40 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple's payout ratio is presently 13.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on AAPL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $315.00 price objective (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Apple from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, November 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $325.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $297.56.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: New addressable market: Apple launched the low‑cost MacBook Neo starting at $599 ($499 student), a clear push into education and budget PC segments that could drive volume and new users for the ecosystem. Apple debuts $599 MacBook Neo to challenge Chromebooks, Windows PCs
• Positive Sentiment: AI and upgrade cycle upside: Apple rolled out M5 chips, new displays and device updates that support an AI/hardware upgrade thesis; some Wall Street firms maintain bullish targets and Buy ratings reflecting multi‑quarter upside. Wedbush maintains $350 Apple target as product blitz reinforces AI hardware push
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed pricing strategy: Apple paired the Neo with higher base prices for M5 MacBook Air/Pro models — a potential boost to ASPs but an uncertain demand trade‑off in a price‑sensitive market. Apple raises MacBook prices across the board as M5 chips, new displays signal AI-first strategy
• Negative Sentiment: Near‑term market reaction: Despite the announcements, shares slipped as investors digested potential margin pressure from the mix of low‑priced models and costlier M5 upgrades; some outlets reported analyst target revisions and short‑term selling. Analyst revises Apple stock price target as new MacBook Neo announced
• Negative Sentiment: Supply/cost risks: A global memory‑chip shortage and higher component costs have forced Apple to raise some Mac prices and could squeeze margins or constrain supply for higher‑end models. Apple Uses Low Prices to Attack Rivals During Memory-Chip Crunch

About Apple

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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