Brave Asset Management Inc. Has $24.21 Million Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Brave Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 3.9% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 83,658 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 3,383 shares during the period. Apple accounts for about 5.2% of Brave Asset Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Brave Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $24,207,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC lifted its stake 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 last quarter. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Apple during the fourth quarter worth approximately $65,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth approximately $69,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new position in Apple in the fourth quarter worth approximately $76,000. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were 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 approximately $11,425,754.82. This represents a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.49, for a total value of $442,478.11. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 38,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,890,023.32. The trade was a 3.59% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 2,994 shares of company stock worth $919,567 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Incoming CEO John Ternus is expected to reassess Apple’s research-and-development budget and potentially increase spending on AI. Analysts see stronger investment in Siri and other AI products as a way to close the gap with technology rivals. Apple Could Get a New R&D and AI Budget
• Positive Sentiment: Potential product catalysts include an AI-enhanced Siri expected later this year, camera-equipped AI AirPods targeted for 2027 and a foldable iPhone that one analyst estimates could sell 14 million units by 2027. Successful launches could support a major upgrade cycle. Apple Wants to Pay Publishers to Improve Siri
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s nationwide rollout of contactless payments will add Apple Pay acceptance across its U.S. stores, websites and apps. The move expands Apple Pay’s reach and strengthens Apple’s services ecosystem. Walmart Adds Apple Pay Nationwide
• Neutral Sentiment: Options activity showed a modestly bullish bias, with calls outnumbering puts, while implied volatility remained below its 52-week median. However, the signal was not strong enough to establish a decisive near-term direction. Apple Options Sentiment
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s leadership change on September 1 is creating both opportunity and uncertainty. Bank of America maintains a Buy view but says Ternus must deliver more surprising products and technologies because the company has become increasingly predictable. Apple Must Relearn How to Surprise
• Negative Sentiment: Apple reportedly cut more than 200 positions tied to Siri and the Vision Pro headset while redirecting resources toward future devices. The restructuring may improve efficiency, but it also highlights execution challenges in AI and spatial computing.
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts have warned that Apple’s insulation from macroeconomic and competitive headwinds is fading. With shares trading at a high earnings multiple, investors may be less tolerant of slower growth, regulatory pressure and delays in AI products. Apple’s Immunity to Headwinds Is Fading
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Apple is quietly shifting attention toward China add geopolitical and demand risk, while its substantial tax settlement and filings highlighting large profits routed through Ireland could renew regulatory scrutiny.
• Negative Sentiment: Senior Vice President Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares under a prearranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The transaction is relatively small and does not necessarily signal a change in fundamentals, but it provides a modest negative headline.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAPL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Apple from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Tigress Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $375.00 target price (up from $305.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $330.53.

Apple Price Performance

NASDAQ AAPL opened at $309.35 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $310.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $287.04. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $224.69 and a twelve month high of $344.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.51 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $109.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%.Apple’s revenue was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.57 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.76 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Apple’s payout ratio is currently 12.39%.

About Apple

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.