Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Purchased by Alliancebernstein L.P.

Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 29,050,171 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 653,320 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for about 2.3% of Alliancebernstein L.P.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 0.20% of Apple worth $7,397,045,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in Apple by 110.9% in the third quarter. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC increased its position 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 worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth $65,000. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple by 41.0% during the second quarter. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC now owns 430 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $88,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, HFM Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Apple in the 1st quarter valued at $99,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on AAPL shares. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $330.00 target price on Apple in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $297.58.

Apple Trading Down 2.2%

Apple stock opened at $250.12 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.67 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $262.08 and a 200-day moving average of $261.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.94. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $169.21 and a one year high of $288.62.

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

Apple Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple’s payout ratio is 13.15%.

Apple News Summary

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.

Apple Company 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.