Royal Fund Management LLC Buys 1,744 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Royal Fund Management increased its Apple stake by 3.8% in the third quarter, buying 1,744 shares and bringing its holdings to 47,666 shares, valued at about $15.9 million.
• Analysts give Apple a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $347.11. Recent bullish commentary cited potential growth from a foldable iPhone and strong iPhone demand.
• Apple’s latest quarterly results beat expectations: earnings were $2.10 per share and revenue was $114.48 billion, up 11.7% year over year. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share.

Royal Fund Management LLC lifted its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 3.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 47,666 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 1,744 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 1.2% of Royal Fund Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Royal Fund Management LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $15,874,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Avenir Tech Ltd bought a new position in Apple during the second quarter worth $29,000. Ironwood Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Apple during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC bought a new position in Apple during the second quarter valued at about $30,000. ABS Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Apple during the second quarter valued at about $376,168,000. Finally, Bamco Inc. NY acquired a new position in Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $118,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on AAPL shares. Daiwa Securities Group raised their price objective on Apple from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Monness Crespi & Hardt restated a "buy" rating and set a $355.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. Melius Research set a $370.00 target price on Apple in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on Apple from $370.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their target price on Apple from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have issued a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $347.11.

Insider Activity

In other Apple news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.01, for a total transaction of $796,491.99. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 39,593 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,145,271.93. This represents a 5.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Timothy Cook sold 191,753 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.96, for a total transaction of $63,846,078.88. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 3,264,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,086,837,377.28. The trade was a 5.55% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 290,212 shares of company stock valued at $96,639,685 in the last ninety days. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

These are some of the AAPL stories that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: China Renaissance upgraded Apple to Buy from Hold and raised its price target to $425, citing growth potential from Apple’s first foldable iPhone. The bullish outlook helped support shares. Analyst raises Apple price target to $425
• Positive Sentiment: Reports point to strong iPhone demand and a record quarterly revenue result, while the foldable iPhone could provide a new growth opportunity. A faster Siri AI roadmap may also strengthen Apple’s longer-term product story.
• Neutral Sentiment: Google is rolling out Gemini Live on Apple CarPlay, bringing another conversational AI option to iPhone users’ cars. This adds functionality to the CarPlay platform, though it also highlights competition for Apple’s own assistant. Google brings Gemini Live to Apple CarPlay

Apple Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $355.63 on Thursday. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.42 and a 52 week high of $355.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.02. The company's fifty day moving average is $337.88 and its 200-day moving average is $300.06. The company has a market capitalization of $5.17 trillion, a PE ratio of 39.65, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.07.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $2.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $114.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $113.40 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.60% and a return on equity of 125.35%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.85 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 9.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 12th will be given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 12th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Apple's payout ratio is 12.04%.

Apple Profile

Apple Inc. designs, manufactures and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its products include the iPhone, Mac computers, iPad, Apple Watch and AirPods, along with operating systems and applications such as iOS, macOS and iPadOS. The company also offers services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, iCloud and Apple Pay. These products and services are integrated across Apple's devices and are sold to consumers, businesses and institutions around the world. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Cupertino, California, Apple serves customers globally through online and retail stores, wireless carriers and other resellers.

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