ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Key Points

• ZWJ Investment Counsel reduced its stake in Apple by 2.4% in Q4 to 253,705 shares worth $68.97 million, making AAPL about 2.5% of the firm's holdings and its 12th-largest position.
• Apple beat Q1 estimates, reporting $2.01 EPS vs. $1.95 expected and $111.18 billion in revenue (+16.6% YoY), with analysts holding a consensus "Moderate Buy" and an average target of $304.31.
• Dividend and ownership activity: Apple raised its quarterly dividend to $0.27 (annualized $1.08, yield 0.4%, ex-dividend May 11), institutional ownership sits at ~67.73%, Fisher reportedly added ~1.28M shares, while insiders sold shares under pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans.

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 253,705 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after selling 6,194 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up about 2.5% of ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Apple were worth $68,972,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. R. W. Roge & Company Inc. lifted its position in shares of Apple by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. R. W. Roge & Company Inc. now owns 10,918 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $2,968,000 after purchasing an additional 703 shares during the period. Cura Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Cura Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 18,664 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $5,074,000 after buying an additional 2,907 shares during the period. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Apple by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC now owns 131,301 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $35,696,000 after acquiring an additional 5,830 shares in the last quarter. Natural Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Natural Investments LLC now owns 96,528 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $26,242,000 after acquiring an additional 4,120 shares during the period. Finally, Oak Ridge Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 7.1% during the 4th quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 592,599 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $161,104,000 after acquiring an additional 39,441 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL stock opened at $287.52 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Apple Inc. has a 1 year low of $193.25 and a 1 year high of $288.62. The company has a market cap of $4.22 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.06. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $261.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $265.79.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $111.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.46 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.Apple's revenue was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.65 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 8.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. This is a positive change from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. Apple's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.06%.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raise targets and bullish commentary — Baird and Bank of America lifted price targets and flagged continued revenue and margin upside after Apple’s strong March-quarter print, supporting investor expectations for further earnings growth. Baird and Bank of America Raise Apple Price Targets
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic AI move — Bloomberg/Reuters reports that iOS 27 will let users pick third‑party AI models across features. This expands the ecosystem for Services, increases device differentiation, and reinforces Apple’s positioning as an AI platform rather than a closed-stack laggard. Apple to let users choose rival AI models across iOS 27 features
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional buying — Fisher Asset Management reportedly added ~1.28M AAPL shares, a sign of confidence from a major manager that can underpin demand. Fisher Asset Management boosts Apple stake
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder return boost — Shareholders of record on May 11 will receive an increased dividend, reinforcing cash-return narrative and attracting income-focused buyers. Mark Your Calendars for May 11 (Dividend)
• Positive Sentiment: iPhone strength — Counterpoint reports the iPhone 17 as the world’s top-selling phone in Q1, underpinning the revenue and services momentum that drove the strong quarter. iPhone 17 Rules, Becomes World's Best-Selling Smartphone
• Neutral Sentiment: Chip-supply diversification talks — Reports that Apple is exploring Intel and Samsung as alternative foundry partners are strategically important (reduces TSMC concentration) but are preliminary; impact depends on execution and timing. Apple-Intel manufacturing talks could be biggest story
• Neutral Sentiment: Higher AI R&D spend — Apple’s first-quarter R&D topped 10% of sales for the first time in 30 years. That increases near-term costs but supports long-term AI competitiveness. Apple crosses 10% of sales on AI R&D
• Neutral Sentiment: Foldable-phone rumors — Reports on a rumored crease‑free foldable design could open a new product category, but remain speculative and long‑range. Apple Wants To Fix The One Thing Users Hate Most About Foldables
• Negative Sentiment: $250M Siri/AI settlement — Apple agreed to settle a class-action for $250M over delayed AI features; reputational and cash impact is limited relative to Apple’s scale but is a headline legal cost. Apple settles lawsuit over late Siri AI features for $250 million
• Negative Sentiment: Short-term supply constraints — Apple has pulled some high‑memory Mac mini/Mac Studio configs from stores and faces Mac supply strain as demand outpaces chip availability, which could constrain revenue/mix near term. Apple pulls high‑memory Mac configs from store on supply crunch

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on AAPL. Phillip Securities upgraded Apple from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, February 1st. Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $253.00 price objective (up from $248.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $325.00 price objective on Apple in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Moffett Nathanson upped their target price on shares of Apple from $241.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $304.31.

Insider Activity at Apple

In other news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total transaction of $16,511,984.27. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,418 shares in the company, valued at $833,980,668.14. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total transaction of $7,661,010.70. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $34,934,433.50. The trade was a 17.99% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 96,485 shares of company stock worth $24,594,845. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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