W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co Increases Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co increased its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 588,020 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,357 shares during the quarter. Apple comprises about 12.4% of W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co’s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co’s holdings in Apple were worth $170,150,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Apple by 1.6% during the second quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 561,622 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $158,996,000 after acquiring an additional 8,726 shares in the last quarter. Elm Partners Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple by 1.5% during the second quarter. Elm Partners Management LLC now owns 26,182 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $7,576,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Apple by 6.4% during the second quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 85,776 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $24,820,000 after purchasing an additional 5,168 shares in the last quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 3.2% during the second quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC now owns 2,093 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $606,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Woodward Diversified Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apple by 7.1% during the second quarter. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC now owns 48,916 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $14,154,000 after purchasing an additional 3,245 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apple News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CEO transition initially welcomed: John Ternus officially became CEO on Sept. 1 after 25 years at Apple, while Tim Cook remains executive chairman. Investors view Ternus’s hardware expertise as providing continuity, and Apple shares rose sharply during his first day in the role. Apple shares rise as John Ternus takes over as CEO
• Positive Sentiment: Constructive analyst outlook: Morgan Stanley reaffirmed its overweight rating and set a $360 price target, while Bank of America reiterated Buy with a $380 target. Analysts see potential for Apple to strengthen its position in the AI era through hardware, services and a new product cycle.
• Positive Sentiment: Foldable iPhone could add significant revenue: Morgan Stanley estimates Apple’s anticipated foldable iPhone could contribute approximately $14 billion in December-quarter revenue, creating a potential new growth engine. Apple foldable iPhone revenue estimate
• Neutral Sentiment: Sept. 9 launch is the key near-term catalyst: Wall Street considers the upcoming iPhone event an important test of pricing power, consumer demand, AI capabilities and whether Apple can sustain growth beyond its mature smartphone franchise. Ternus has described the launch as “phenomenal.” Why the next iPhone launch matters
• Neutral Sentiment: Leadership incentives align with shareholders: Ternus’s approximately $55 million–$58 million compensation package is heavily tied to Apple’s performance relative to the S&P 500. Cook will receive about $47 million as executive chairman, supporting continuity but underscoring his continued influence.
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and growth concerns remain: DA Davidson maintained a Neutral rating with a $270 target, and Rosenblatt kept Neutral despite raising its target to $303. Analysts warn that Apple may need the foldable iPhone and stronger AI execution to avoid a revenue slowdown next year, while its premium valuation leaves limited room for disappointment.
• Negative Sentiment: AI, memory costs and legal risks weigh on sentiment: Apple trails some rivals in AI, faces elevated memory-chip costs that could pressure margins, and is engaged in a contentious trade-secrets lawsuit with OpenAI. OpenAI denies Apple’s allegations, increasing uncertainty around the dispute.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, SVP Jennifer Newstead sold 1,439 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.95, for a total transaction of $447,457.05. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 37,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,576,357.55. This trade represents a 3.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Ben Borders sold 116 shares of Apple stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.14, for a total value of $34,236.24. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 38,713 shares in the company, valued at $11,425,754.82. This trade represents a 0.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 4,433 shares of company stock valued at $1,367,024 in the last quarter. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on AAPL shares. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research note on Wednesday. DZ Bank downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $310.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $245.00 price target (down from $253.00) on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $330.61.

Apple Stock Down 0.1%

Apple stock opened at $324.96 on Thursday. Apple Inc. has a 12 month low of $225.95 and a 12 month high of $344.57. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $313.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $289.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market cap of $4.74 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.27, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.09.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced 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. The firm had revenue of $109.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.04 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 135.46% and a net margin of 27.62%.The company’s quarterly 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. Equities analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

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