Insider Selling: Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) CEO Sells $8,460,671.28 in Stock

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) CEO John Ternus sold 25,412 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.94, for a total transaction of $8,460,671.28. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 59,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,832,236.98. The trade was a 29.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing 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.

Apple Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of AAPL opened at $336.67 on Thursday. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.42 and a 12-month high of $345.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.91 trillion, a P/E ratio of 38.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.07. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $321.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $302.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. Apple had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 135.46%. The company had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.57 earnings per share. Apple’s quarterly revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Apple Inc. will post 8.75 EPS for the current year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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

Key Apple News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple is reportedly partnering with LG Electronics to develop a smart-home lineup including a doorbell, smart lock, thermostat and other accessories tied to a new Apple home hub. The initiative could expand the HomeKit ecosystem, create new hardware and services revenue, and intensify competition with Amazon’s Ring and Google’s Nest. Apple partners with LG on smart-home devices
• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s App Store revenue growth reportedly rebounded to 5% in September after a weaker August. Continued Services momentum supports the company’s recurring-revenue profile, though investors are watching whether the improvement proves durable. Apple App Store growth rebounds
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO John Ternus sold 25,412 shares worth about $8.5 million to cover tax withholding tied to equity vesting. Because the transaction was tax-related rather than described as discretionary selling, it is unlikely to materially change the investment case, though it may create short-term headline pressure. Apple CEO stock sale
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley lowered its Apple price target to $355 despite raising revenue forecasts, citing softer iPhone pricing and higher memory-chip costs that could compress gross margins. The target is only modestly above recent trading levels, limiting perceived upside. Morgan Stanley cuts Apple price target
• Negative Sentiment: Several valuation comparisons highlight that investors pay substantially more for each dollar of Apple’s earnings than for Nvidia’s, despite Nvidia’s stronger recent profitability. With AAPL trading at an elevated earnings multiple, the stock may require sustained iPhone, Services and AI growth to justify its premium. Nvidia versus Apple valuation comparison

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on AAPL. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Apple in a research note on Monday, August 17th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. DZ Bank cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $310.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Arete Research upped their target price on shares of Apple from $305.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $340.02.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Avenir Tech Ltd acquired a new position in Apple in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple by 822.7% in the second quarter. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC now owns 292,493 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 260,792 shares during the period. Finally, Basso Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Apple in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $88,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Apple

Apple Inc is a technology company that designs, develops and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its best-known products include the iPhone smartphone, Mac personal computers, iPad tablets, Apple Watch, AirPods and other accessories. The company also develops operating systems and software platforms, including iOS, macOS, iPadOS, watchOS and visionOS.

Apple’s services business includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, Apple Fitness+ and iCloud.