Simplicity Wealth LLC Acquires 5,018 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Simplicity Wealth LLC increased its Apple stake by 4.9% in the first quarter, buying 5,018 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 107,322 shares worth about $27.24 million.
• Apple reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $2.01 beating estimates and revenue of $111.18 billion topping forecasts, while sales rose 16.6% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.27 per share, and analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $327.40.

Simplicity Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 4.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 107,322 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 5,018 shares during the period. Apple makes up about 1.5% of Simplicity Wealth LLC's holdings, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Simplicity Wealth LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $27,237,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Overbrook Management Corp raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 57.4% in the 4th quarter. Overbrook Management Corp now owns 104,648 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $28,449,000 after buying an additional 38,174 shares during the period. Rainier Family Wealth Inc. boosted its holdings in Apple by 14.1% during the 1st quarter. Rainier Family Wealth Inc. now owns 24,386 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $6,189,000 after acquiring an additional 3,014 shares during the period. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,178,000. Summit Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Apple by 108.3% in the 1st quarter. Summit Wealth Partners LLC now owns 34,989 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $8,880,000 after acquiring an additional 18,188 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Adventist Health System Sunbelt Healthcare Corp purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $105,482,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company's stock.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $333.02 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $306.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $279.01. Apple Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $201.50 and a fifty-two week high of $334.99. The company has a market capitalization of $4.89 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.The business had revenue of $111.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.65 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.06%.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In related news, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total transaction of $369,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,226,770. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AAPL shares. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $365.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Barclays reaffirmed an "underweight" rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Oppenheimer reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane raised Apple from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, April 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $327.40.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ford said it will embed Apple Maps into upcoming EVs, expanding Apple’s software reach and reinforcing the value of its ecosystem. Ford Embeds Apple Maps Directly into Upcoming EVs
• Positive Sentiment: Baird raised its price target on Apple and reiterated an Outperform rating, adding to bullish analyst momentum. Finviz
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary highlighted Apple as outperforming the broader market, supported by strong ratings and a favorable chart setup ahead of earnings. Why is Apple stock outperforming the broader market?
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple was also the subject of discussion around upcoming product launches, AI features, and a possible device-leasing program, which could support demand but remain unconfirmed or longer-term in nature.
• Negative Sentiment: Some reports noted concerns that Apple’s valuation is stretched heading into earnings, and insider sales plus short-interest chatter may temper enthusiasm if results disappoint.

Apple Profile

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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