1248 Management LLC Decreases Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

1248 Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 63.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,746 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 30,799 shares during the period. Apple makes up approximately 2.5% of 1248 Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. 1248 Management LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $4,519,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AAPL. Isthmus Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 97,177 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 5,808 shares during the period. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Apple by 110.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 1,800.0% during the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth $65,000. Finally, 49 Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Apple by 15.7% during the third quarter. 49 Wealth Management LLC now owns 298,920 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 40,543 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s new low-cost devices (MacBook Neo, iPhone 17e) broaden addressable market and could win share versus cheaper Windows/Chromebooks — a strategic growth lever even if it pressures near-term margins. How Apple’s new low-cost MacBook Neo may shake up the market
• Positive Sentiment: Early Formula 1 ratings for AppleTV’s exclusive U.S. stream were strong, supporting the thesis that exclusive sports/content deals can grow Services subscriptions and engagement over time. Apple Gets Early Formula 1 Ratings Win
• Positive Sentiment: India’s plan to roll fresh smartphone manufacturing incentives could help Apple expand local production and improve margin/market access over the medium term. India plans fresh incentives for phone production
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views are mixed: a few firms raised targets or reiterated buys while others stay cautious/neutral; median price targets remain above the market, keeping a longer-term bullish backdrop but no unanimous near-term catalyst. Apple Stock Opinions on Tech Sector Pullback
• Negative Sentiment: Apple cut its mainland China App Store commission to 25% (and mini-app fees to 12%) after regulator talks — good for developer relations but a direct hit to Services take-rate and near-term revenue in its second‑largest market. Apple cuts China App Store commission fees after government pressure
• Negative Sentiment: Strong insider selling and social/board chatter about a tech pullback and China demand risks are weighing on sentiment — traders are highlighting technical weakness and short-term bearish views. Apple Stock Opinions on Tech Sector Pullback
• Negative Sentiment: Macro and supply‑chain risks (memory/storage cost inflation and geopolitical disruption tied to the Iran war) could raise component costs and compress device margins if Apple absorbs price moves to hold consumer prices. The Iran War Could Upend AI. Here’s How.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AAPL. Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $330.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $297.58.

Apple Stock Down 2.2%

AAPL opened at $250.12 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.67 trillion, a P/E ratio of 31.62, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $262.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $261.52. Apple Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.21 and a 52 week high of $288.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $143.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $138.25 billion. Apple had a net margin of 27.04% and a return on equity of 159.94%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.40 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were given a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 13.15%.

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.