Scratch Capital LLC Sells 3,762 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Scratch Capital LLC cut its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 63.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,159 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 3,762 shares during the period. Apple comprises about 0.4% of Scratch Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Scratch Capital LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $587,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Apple by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,415,932,804 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $290,506,933,000 after acquiring an additional 15,141,995 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Apple by 0.9% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 601,249,995 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $123,358,461,000 after purchasing an additional 5,224,229 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 1.4% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 354,749,794 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $72,506,336,000 after purchasing an additional 4,942,638 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the second quarter worth $38,942,255,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Apple by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 171,385,531 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,918,365,000 after purchasing an additional 20,079,472 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AAPL. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Apple from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, KGI Securities raised Apple to an “outperform” rating and set a $306.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $297.58.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In related news, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $833,980,668.14. This represents a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 30,002 shares of the 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $34,934,433.50. This trade represents a 17.99% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Top investor endorsement — Billionaire Ken Griffin lists Apple among his five best stock picks, highlighting institutional conviction and potential buying support. 5 Best Stocks to Buy According to Billionaire Ken Griffin
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst backing — Bank of America reiterates a Buy and cites accelerating services growth and on‑device AI upside, supporting a premium valuation thesis and positive analyst flow. Apple: Accelerating Services Growth and On‑Device AI Upside Support Premium Valuation and Buy Rating
• Positive Sentiment: U.S. manufacturing boost — Apple expands its U.S. manufacturing program with a reported $400M investment, a politically favorable move that can reduce supply risk and support margin/PR. Apple Inc. (AAPL) expands US manufacturing program with $400M investment
• Neutral Sentiment: Positive narrative around Apple at 50 — Extensive coverage of Apple’s 50th anniversary reminds investors of the company’s long-term durability, but raises governance/succession questions that are medium‑term rather than catalytic. Apple At 50 Weighs AI Partnerships Satellite Ties And Succession
• Neutral Sentiment: AI positioning debate — Coverage highlights a strategic pivot toward opening Siri to third‑party AI assistants and other AI moves; this reduces long-term AI execution risk but timing and monetization remain uncertain. Apple’s AI Strategy Is Pivoting. Here’s Why That Could Be Great News for the Stock.
• Negative Sentiment: Satellite dependency risk — Reports that Amazon is in talks to buy Globalstar (Apple’s satellite partner for Emergency SOS/messaging) raise competitive and supply‑chain uncertainty for Apple’s satellite features. Amazon Lines Up Deal to Rival SpaceX’s Starlink: Report. Why Apple Could Be a Problem.
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation pressure — Commentary points to a rich trailing and forward P/E (high 20s–30s) that’s prompting profit‑taking and making AAPL sensitive to any slowdown in growth or disappointment on AI execution. Is Apple Stock Overvalued Or Undervalued?
• Negative Sentiment: Geopolitical / macro risk — Headlines about potential targeting of U.S. tech firms and broader Mag‑7 weakness amplify downside risk if tensions or macro selloffs persist. AAPL Stock on Watch: Iran Threatens Retaliatory Strikes Could Hit Apple Next

Apple Price Performance

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $255.92 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The company has a market capitalization of $3.76 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.11. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $288.62. The business’s 50-day moving average is $260.67 and its 200 day moving average is $263.21.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $143.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $138.25 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 159.94% and a net margin of 27.04%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.40 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.15%.

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.