Van Diest Capital LLC Buys 11,666 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• Van Diest Capital increased its Apple stake by 197.1% in the first quarter, buying 11,666 additional shares to reach 17,586 shares valued at approximately $4.46 million. Apple now represents about 3.5% of the firm’s portfolio.
• Institutional ownership remains substantial at 67.73%, with major investors including Vanguard, Norges Bank, Nuveen and Cardano Risk Management expanding or initiating positions.
• Apple’s outlook is mixed: the company beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, but analysts cited supply-chain cost pressures, potential iPhone production-cost increases and product execution risks. The stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $328.60.

Van Diest Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 197.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,586 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after buying an additional 11,666 shares during the period. Apple comprises approximately 3.5% of Van Diest Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Van Diest Capital LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $4,463,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter valued at about $52,266,468,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the first quarter worth about $17,472,482,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. increased its stake in shares of Apple by 890.7% in the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 41,984,810 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $11,413,990,000 after buying an additional 37,746,784 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake 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 buying an additional 26,937,401 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Apple by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $387,749,545,000 after buying an additional 26,856,752 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple is testing memory chips from China’s CXMT for some iPhones and MacBooks sold in China. If approved by U.S. authorities, the move could provide an additional supply source and help mitigate shortages caused by surging AI-related demand. Apple tests China's CXMT memory chips
• Positive Sentiment: Some Apple-focused investors, including Deepwater Asset Management’s Gene Munster, argue that the shares remain undervalued and that future iPhone price increases, artificial-intelligence features and a potential upgrade cycle could support longer-term growth. Gene Munster disagrees with Apple downgrade
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple is scheduled to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share on August 13 to eligible shareholders, providing a modest near-term shareholder return. Apple dividend payment
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies downgraded Apple from Hold to Underperform and cut its price target to $263.66 from $285.56. Analyst Edison Lee reportedly believes Apple has scrapped a planned all-glass iPhone because of production challenges, removing a potential premium product that could have lifted average selling prices and profitability. Apple could underperform without an all-glass iPhone
• Negative Sentiment: Memory and storage costs are rising sharply amid the AI-driven supply crunch; reports suggest iPhone 18 production costs could increase by roughly 38%. Apple may need to raise prices, risking weaker demand, or absorb the costs, pressuring margins. Apple's iPhone 18 costs could jump 38%
• Negative Sentiment: The CXMT testing also introduces geopolitical and execution risks: U.S. restrictions could limit Apple’s access to the supplier, while CXMT’s capacity and technology may lag established memory manufacturers. These issues add uncertainty to Apple’s supply chain and pricing strategy.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AAPL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $245.00 target price (down from $253.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Maxim Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $350.00 price target (up from $310.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $350.00 price target (up from $310.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Apple from $345.00 to $340.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $328.60.

Apple Price Performance

Apple stock opened at $308.26 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.50 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.35, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.09. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $223.78 and a 52-week high of $344.57. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $309.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $283.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.04 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 135.46%. Apple's quarterly revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

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 $11,425,754.82. This represents a 0.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

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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