Conning Inc. Sells 10,580 Shares of Apple Inc. $AAPL

Conning Inc. lowered its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 11.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 85,019 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 10,580 shares during the period. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $21,577,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC grew 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 valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter worth $69,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth $76,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,425,754.82. The trade was a 0.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Apple Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AAPL opened at $333.02 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.07. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $306.62 and a 200 day moving average of $279.01. The firm has a market cap of $4.89 trillion, a PE ratio of 40.27, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.10. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $201.50 and a one year high of $334.99.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. The business had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.65 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This is a boost from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.06%.

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ford said it will embed Apple Maps into upcoming EVs, expanding Apple’s software reach and reinforcing the value of its ecosystem. Ford Embeds Apple Maps Directly into Upcoming EVs
• Positive Sentiment: Baird raised its price target on Apple and reiterated an Outperform rating, adding to bullish analyst momentum. Finviz
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary highlighted Apple as outperforming the broader market, supported by strong ratings and a favorable chart setup ahead of earnings. Why is Apple stock outperforming the broader market?
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple was also the subject of discussion around upcoming product launches, AI features, and a possible device-leasing program, which could support demand but remain unconfirmed or longer-term in nature.
• Negative Sentiment: Some reports noted concerns that Apple’s valuation is stretched heading into earnings, and insider sales plus short-interest chatter may temper enthusiasm if results disappoint.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on AAPL shares. BNP Paribas Exane raised Apple from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, April 17th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price target on shares of Apple from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $310.00 price objective (up from $300.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $327.40.

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.