Apple Inc. $AAPL Position Cut by Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC

Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC decreased its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 4.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 403,458 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 16,869 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises 6.5% of Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s holdings in Apple were worth $116,744,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AAPL. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new position in Apple in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 1,800.0% during the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth $69,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth about $65,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $76,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total transaction of $34,236.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,425,754.82. This trade represents a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 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 firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.49, for a total value of $442,478.11. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 38,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,890,023.32. This trade represents a 3.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,994 shares of company stock valued at $919,567. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 31st. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $365.00 price target (up from $315.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, July 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price 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, Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $330.53.

Apple Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $309.90 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a market cap of $4.52 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.54, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.09. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $311.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $287.69. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $224.69 and a twelve month high of $344.57.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its quarterly 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 during 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%. The business’s revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.57 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.39%.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: New AI-focused Macs strengthen Apple’s edge-computing strategy. Apple launched updated Mac mini and Mac Studio desktops powered by the M6 and M5 Ultra chips, emphasizing local AI workloads. The M6 reportedly uses a 2-nanometer process, while the M5 Ultra supports large models with up to 512GB of unified memory. The products could expand Apple’s role in AI development without requiring the massive infrastructure spending undertaken by rivals. Apple announces new Mac Mini and Mac Studio models with AI upgrades
• Positive Sentiment: Evercore maintained an Outperform rating and $365 price target. The firm said the higher Mac mini prices appear justified by the performance improvements, providing a positive Wall Street signal even as AAPL trades at a demanding valuation. Apple Stock Reiterated as Outperform
• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s capital-light AI approach is attracting investor interest. With technology shares exposed to concerns about an AI infrastructure spending race, Apple’s focus on on-device AI and its existing hardware ecosystem is being viewed as a relative advantage. Apple Rises as Investors Flee the AI Spending Arms Race
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple reversed a planned change to Hide My Email. Preserving the privacy feature may support customer trust, but the move is unlikely to materially affect near-term revenue or earnings. Apple rescues Hide My Email feature
• Negative Sentiment: Higher Mac prices and memory shortages could limit demand. The new Mac mini reportedly starts at $899, while the top Mac Studio configuration can cost substantially more. Persistent memory constraints could raise component costs and eventually contribute to higher iPhone prices, pressuring consumer demand and margins. Apple launches faster Mac mini and Mac Studio
• Negative Sentiment: AI execution and restructuring remain concerns. Apple is cutting more than 200 positions across Siri and Vision Pro while redirecting resources toward AI and smart glasses. The shift may improve focus, but it also highlights delays and uncertainty around Apple’s AI product roadmap. Apple cuts 200 jobs in Siri and Vision Pro
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation leaves limited room for disappointment. Around $310 per share, AAPL carries a market value above $4.5 trillion and a forward-looking growth profile that depends heavily on the next iPhone cycle. Analysts remain constructive, but investors are sensitive to evidence of slower growth, pricing pressure or weaker AI adoption.

About Apple

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.