Ellenbecker Investment Group Boosts Stock Position in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Ellenbecker Investment Group lifted its position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 4.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,676 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after buying an additional 1,738 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up 1.5% of Ellenbecker Investment Group’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Ellenbecker Investment Group’s holdings in Apple were worth $10,515,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAPL. Isthmus Partners LLC increased its stake in Apple by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 97,177 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 5,808 shares during the period. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 110.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 1,800.0% during the 1st 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 period. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in Apple during the 4th quarter worth about $65,000. Finally, 49 Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Apple by 15.7% during the 3rd 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 during the period. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on AAPL. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $380.00 price objective (up from $330.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group set a $296.00 price objective on shares of Apple and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. KGI Securities raised shares of Apple to an “outperform” rating and set a $306.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $365.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a report on Thursday, May 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $310.31.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s upcoming WWDC is expected to showcase a major Siri AI overhaul and broader iOS AI upgrades, reinforcing expectations for a stronger AI product cycle. Apple to Unveil Siri’s AI Overhaul at June Conference
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts are increasingly bullish that Apple’s ecosystem could benefit from agentic AI, with Bank of America reportedly lifting its price target and pointing to user identity, payments, and app access as key advantages. Bank of America Raises Its Apple Stock Price Target to $380. Agentic AI Could Be the Upside Driver.
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple pieces highlight Apple as a momentum stock and suggest Apple Intelligence could drive iPhone and Mac upgrades, which supports the case for further revenue growth. Apple Intelligence Drives Up iPhone & Mac Sales: More Upside Ahead?
• Neutral Sentiment: Leak-driven coverage around the iPhone 18 Pro’s rumored colors and camera changes is generating buzz, but it is too early to be a major fundamental stock driver. iPhone 18 Pro dummy units reveal four color options [Gallery] – 9to5Mac
• Negative Sentiment: Some technical commentary warns Apple is approaching long-term resistance and may need a consolidation period after a strong run, which could limit near-term upside. Apple (AAPL) Faces $355 Barrier at Top of Its Multi-Year Uptrend Structure

Apple Trading Down 0.1%

NASDAQ:AAPL opened at $312.06 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $275.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $270.06. The company has a market capitalization of $4.58 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Apple Inc. has a 52-week low of $195.07 and a 52-week high of $315.00.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a return on equity of 146.69% and a net margin of 27.15%.The firm had revenue of $111.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.65 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were given 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, May 11th. This is an increase from Apple’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Apple’s payout ratio is 13.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other Apple news, insider Ben Borders sold 1,274 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total value of $369,460.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,226,770. This trade represents a 3.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Timothy D. Cook sold 64,949 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.23, for a total value of $16,511,984.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 3,280,418 shares in the company, valued at $833,980,668.14. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 97,759 shares of company stock valued at $24,964,305. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

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.