Apple Inc. $AAPL Stock: Howland Capital Management LLC Lowers Stake

Howland Capital Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 3.4% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 512,713 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 18,221 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises 6.0% of Howland Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Howland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $170,744,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AAPL. Sterling Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Apple by 0.3% in the second quarter. Sterling Wealth Management Inc. now owns 11,579 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $3,351,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Thor Investment Management Inc. OH ADV boosted its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.6% in the third quarter. Thor Investment Management Inc. OH ADV now owns 1,912 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $637,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Evansbrook LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 0.4% during the first quarter. Evansbrook LLC now owns 8,095 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $2,054,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. JMG Financial Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Apple by 0.7% during the first quarter. JMG Financial Group Ltd. now owns 5,102 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $1,295,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Forward LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 0.3% during the third quarter. Wealth Forward LLC now owns 13,327 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $4,438,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on AAPL. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $380.00 price objective on shares of Apple in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Apple in a research note on Monday, August 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $340.00 price objective on Apple and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have given a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $343.74.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple

In other news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 2,399 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.01, for a total value of $796,491.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 39,593 shares in the company, valued at $13,145,271.93. This trade represents a 5.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO John Ternus sold 25,412 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.94, for a total value of $8,460,671.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 59,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,832,236.98. The trade was a 29.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 290,212 shares of company stock valued at $96,639,685. Corporate 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: Apple has held up better than many Big Tech peers and recently reached record territory, with investors appearing to favor its restrained AI infrastructure spending compared with peers’ heavy investment. That approach may help preserve cash and margins, though it also raises questions about its AI competitiveness. Apple Is Holding Strong While Big Tech Sells Off. Is It Next?
• Positive Sentiment: Apple Intelligence cleared a regulatory step for use on tablets and laptops in China, potentially expanding the service’s reach in a key market. Apple Intelligence registers with Chinese regulator
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple is reportedly holding capital spending steady while rivals accelerate AI infrastructure investment. This could support cash generation, but investors may also question whether the company is investing enough to keep pace in AI. Apple holds capex steady as peers accelerate AI infrastructure buildout
• Negative Sentiment: Binance warned that an iOS vulnerability could allow malicious apps to access data from other apps, potentially exposing crypto-wallet keys and credentials. Uncertainty over affected versions and whether updates resolve the flaw could create security and reputational concerns. Binance warns iOS flaw could expose crypto wallet keys
• Negative Sentiment: Reports of worker deaths at an Indian supplier and an ensuing investigation raise potential supply-chain, operational and reputational risks as Apple expands manufacturing in India. Apple faces major supplier investigation after 3 worker deaths
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation concerns and a reported memory-cost squeeze could pressure expectations. KeyCorp also cut its fiscal 2027 EPS forecast to $8.34 from $9.08 and maintains an Underweight rating with a $250 price target, well below the consensus forecast cited in the report. Apple Is Above $5 Trillion After Its First-Ever Close Above $350

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL stock opened at $348.56 on Wednesday. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.42 and a 12 month high of $355.38. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $337.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $299.52. The firm has a market cap of $5.07 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The iPhone maker reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.11. Apple had a net margin of 27.60% and a return on equity of 125.35%. The business had revenue of $114.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $113.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.85 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 12th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 12th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Apple’s payout ratio is 12.04%.

Apple Profile

Apple Inc. designs, manufactures and markets consumer electronics, software and digital services. Its products include the iPhone, Mac computers, iPad, Apple Watch and AirPods, along with operating systems and applications such as iOS, macOS and iPadOS. The company also offers services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, iCloud and Apple Pay. These products and services are integrated across Apple’s devices and are sold to consumers, businesses and institutions around the world. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Cupertino, California, Apple serves customers globally through online and retail stores, wireless carriers and other resellers.