SFE Investment Counsel Makes New Investment in Apple Inc. $AAPL

SFE Investment Counsel acquired a new stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 86,015 shares of the iPhone maker's stock, valued at approximately $24,889,000. Apple makes up about 3.4% of SFE Investment Counsel's holdings, making the stock its 4th largest holding.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Baron Silver Stevens Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 65.6% during the second quarter. Baron Silver Stevens Financial Advisors LLC now owns 66,717 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $19,305,000 after acquiring an additional 26,418 shares during the last quarter. Rainier Family Wealth Inc. boosted its position in Apple by 14.1% in the first quarter. Rainier Family Wealth Inc. now owns 24,386 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $6,189,000 after purchasing an additional 3,014 shares during the last quarter. Eaton Cambridge Inc. grew its stake in Apple by 21.3% in the 1st quarter. Eaton Cambridge Inc. now owns 13,968 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $3,545,000 after purchasing an additional 2,450 shares during the period. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $1,178,000. Finally, Summit Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 108.3% during the 1st quarter. Summit Wealth Partners LLC now owns 34,989 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $8,880,000 after purchasing an additional 18,188 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In related news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 owned 35,790 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,345,787.90. This represents a 3.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total value of $34,236.24. Following the sale, the insider owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% 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 sold 7,310 shares of company stock valued at $2,279,378 over the last quarter. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on AAPL shares. KGI Securities downgraded shares of Apple from an "outperform" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $315.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. HSBC reissued a "buy" rating and set a $366.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday. Bank of America reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $370.00 price target (down from $380.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $334.91.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

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.

Apple Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $332.27 on Friday. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $229.02 and a 12 month high of $344.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.85 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.10, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a 50-day moving average of $318.20 and a 200-day moving average of $292.45.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.04 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.57 earnings per share. Apple's quarterly revenue was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th were given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Apple's 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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