S&CO Inc. Purchases New Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• S&CO Inc. purchased 220,707 Apple shares worth approximately $63.9 million in the second quarter, making Apple its fifth-largest holding and representing 3.7% of its portfolio.
• Apple reported quarterly EPS of $2.02 and revenue of $109.42 billion, exceeding analyst expectations, while revenue rose 16.4% year over year. The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $334.91, though valuation, margin pressure, competition and mixed analyst revisions remain key risks.

S&CO Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 220,707 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $63,863,000. Apple accounts for approximately 3.7% of S&CO Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth $41,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 1,800.0% in the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth $65,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth $69,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth $76,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Price Performance

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $332.27 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $4.85 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.08. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $229.02 and a fifty-two week high of $344.57. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $318.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $292.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its 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. The business had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.57 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current fiscal 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 paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. Apple's dividend payout ratio is 12.39%.

Apple News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: iPhone Duo creates a potential new growth cycle. Apple’s $1,999 foldable iPhone, scheduled to arrive October 23, could drive upgrades, deepen ecosystem engagement and add a high-margin premium product category. Some analysts believe foldables could eventually account for 10% to 20% of iPhone revenue. How Wall Street viewed Apple's foldable iPhone
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see renewed hardware momentum. Alongside the Duo, Apple unveiled the iPhone 18 Pro lineup, new Apple Watch models, AirPods 5 and expanded Siri AI features. TD Cowen maintained a Buy rating with a $400 target, supporting the bullish reaction. TD Cowen reiterates Buy rating
• Positive Sentiment: Carrier promotions could reduce sticker-price resistance. T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon are offering installment and trade-in incentives for the expensive Duo, potentially broadening access without an immediate industrywide price war. Wireless carrier promotions
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street remains divided. Bank of America retained a Buy rating but lowered its price target to $370, while Rosenblatt kept a Neutral rating and $303 target. The debate centers on Duo demand, supply constraints, valuation and the durability of the upgrade cycle.
• Negative Sentiment: Margin pressure remains the main risk. Apple raised iPhone Pro prices by $100, but memory and other component costs are rising rapidly. Management has already guided to lower gross margins, raising concerns that pricing may not fully offset higher costs. Apple margin pressure from memory costs
• Negative Sentiment: Premium valuation and competition limit upside. Apple trades near the upper end of its historical earnings multiple, while Huawei, Xiaomi and Samsung remain strong competitors in China and the foldable market.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling is a modest cautionary signal. SVP Jennifer Newstead sold approximately $456,000 of stock, reducing her direct holdings by about 4%, although she retains a substantial position.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the transaction, the insider owned 38,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,425,754.82. This trade represents a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $317.01, for a total value of $456,177.39. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 35,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,345,787.90. This represents a 3.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 7,310 shares of company stock worth $2,279,378 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AAPL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday. Seaport Research Partners cut Apple from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. KeyCorp reiterated an "underweight" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, September 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Apple from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $334.91.

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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