Apple Inc. $AAPL Stake Reduced by Sweeney & Michel LLC

Sweeney & Michel LLC trimmed its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.6% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 73,465 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 1,991 shares during the period. Apple comprises 6.4% of Sweeney & Michel LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Sweeney & Michel LLC’s holdings in Apple were worth $24,465,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AAPL. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Apple by 4.7% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 630,662,494 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $182,897,769,000 after purchasing an additional 28,321,085 shares during the last quarter. Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought a new stake in Apple during the second quarter worth approximately $65,950,297,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Apple during the second quarter worth approximately $36,986,090,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in Apple during the second quarter worth approximately $30,443,242,000. Finally, Amundi grew its position in Apple by 23.2% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 73,082,616 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $18,547,637,000 after buying an additional 13,780,080 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, CEO John Ternus sold 25,412 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 1,280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.40, for a total transaction of $442,112.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 38,288 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,224,675.20. This trade represents a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 289,252 shares of company stock worth $96,301,063 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Stock Performance

Shares of AAPL opened at $344.63 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $333.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $296.38. The stock has a market cap of $5.03 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.52, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.93. Apple Inc. has a one year low of $243.42 and a one year high of $351.73.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.57 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 8.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAPL has been the topic of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. Citic Securities increased their price objective on Apple from $300.00 to $349.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Apple from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Loop Capital cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $370.00 to $330.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 20th. Finally, Phillip Securities lifted their target price on Apple from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $340.49.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple acquired Ascension Labs, which operates as Ascend.io, gaining access to agentic artificial-intelligence talent and intellectual property. The deal supports Apple’s effort to strengthen its AI capabilities, although financial terms were not disclosed. Apple Acquires AI Firm Ascend.io Talent and Patents
• Positive Sentiment: Demand indicators remain supportive: the foldable iPhone Duo reportedly sold out quickly, orders are backed up, and Apple is positioned to benefit from strong iPhone, Mac and Services demand. Analysts including Bank of America and Goldman Sachs remain constructive, with BofA reiterating a Buy rating and a $370 price target. Analyst Reiterates Buy on Apple
• Positive Sentiment: The first touchscreen MacBook Pro, equipped with OLED displays and M5 Pro or M5 Max chips, expands Apple’s premium hardware lineup and could support a new product-cycle catalyst. Apple Shows First Touchscreen Laptops
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s earnings report is the immediate focus. Investors will look for evidence that revenue growth, Services momentum and AI investments can offset rising component costs and potentially slower holiday growth. Options activity suggests substantial volatility around the release. Apple November 2 Earnings Preview
• Negative Sentiment: AI-related demand has sharply increased flash-memory prices, raising concerns that Apple’s gross margin will come under pressure. Qualcomm also indicated that Apple-related revenue is declining faster than previously expected, reinforcing concerns about the pace of future iPhone growth. AI Has Made Flash Memory More Expensive
• Negative Sentiment: At roughly 40 times earnings and near its yearly high, Apple has limited room for an earnings or guidance disappointment. A senior vice president’s repeated stock sales and a South Korean fine related to app-market practices add modest additional caution. Apple Insider Selling

Apple Company Profile

Apple Inc designs, develops and sells 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 applications that support its hardware ecosystem.

Apple’s services business includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV, Apple Arcade, iCloud, Apple Pay and other subscription, payment and digital-content offerings.