Meridian Financial Partners LLC Sells 117 Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

On February 26, 2025, it was reported that Meridian Financial Partners LLC decreased its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 0.3% as revealed by Holdings Channel.com. As of the end of the fourth quarter, the institutional investor now holds 33,971 shares of Apple's stock after selling 117 shares during this period. With this adjustment, Apple accounts for about 4.5% of Meridian Financial Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, positioning it as the fourth largest holding. At the conclusion of the latest reporting period, these shares were valued at approximately $8,507,000.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in Apple. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its holdings by 16.8% in the fourth quarter, bringing their total to 468,966 shares worth around $117,438,000 after acquiring an additional 67,346 shares. Kathmere Capital Management LLC also raised its stake by 7.4%, owning 82,903 shares valued at $20,761,000 after an additional purchase of 5,693 shares. Meanwhile, San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings by 2.3%, now owning 141,196 shares worth approximately $35,358,000 following a purchase of 3,223 shares. Additionally, the Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new position in shares of Apple with an estimated value of $902,000. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC has grown its investment by 4.5%, now holding 291,250 shares valued at about $72,935,000 after buying an additional 12,466 shares. Notably, institutional investors collectively own 67.73% of the company's shares.

Changes in Analyst Ratings

Recent ratings changes by analysts regarding Apple's stock have caught attention. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target for Apple shares from $240.00 to $260.00 while maintaining an “outperform” rating in a report dated January 3rd. Wedbush reaffirmed their “outperform” stance and set a price target of $325.00 for the stock on January 23rd. Additionally, Barclays increased their target price from $183.00 to $197.00 but listed the stock as “underweight” in a note on January 31st. Redburn Partners established a price objective of $230.00 on the same date. Lastly, Bank of America raised their target from $253.00 to $265.00, also giving the stock a “buy” rating. The current ratings indicate that four analysts rate the stock as a sell, ten as hold, twenty-one as buy, and two as strong buy, suggesting a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” with an average target price of $243.88 according to MarketBeat.com.

Apple's Market Performance

On the trading day of February 26, shares of AAPL opened at $247.04. Apple Inc. is characterized by a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.88, and a current ratio of 0.92. The company's stock has experienced a fluctuation, reaching a 52-week low of $164.07 and a high of $260.10. With a market capitalization of $3.71 trillion, Apple has a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.21, a PEG ratio of 2.44, and a beta of 1.20. Additionally, the stock's fifty-day moving average is $240.26, while the 200-day moving average stands at $233.34.

Apple recently announced its quarterly earnings on January 30th, where the tech giant reported earnings per share of $2.40, exceeding the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.04. Apple’s return on equity was a notable 160.83% with a net margin of 24.30%. Analysts predict that Apple will achieve earnings per share of 7.28 for the current fiscal year.

Dividend Information

Additionally, Apple declared a quarterly dividend, which was distributed on February 13th. Stockholders who were on record as of February 10th received a dividend of $0.25. This results in an annualized dividend of $1.00, demonstrating a yield of 0.40%. The ex-dividend date was also February 10th, and Apple's current payout ratio stands at 15.87%.

Insider Transactions

In recent news regarding insider trading, COO Jeffrey E. Williams sold 100,000 shares of Apple on December 16th at an average price of $249.97, resulting in a total transaction value of approximately $24,997,000. Following this sale, the COO retains 389,944 shares valued at around $97,474,301.68, marking a 20.41% decrease in his position. This transaction was documented in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible for review. At present, insiders own 0.06% of Apple.

About Apple Inc.

Apple Inc. is involved in designing, manufacturing, and marketing various technology products, including smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and other accessories globally. Its product lines feature the iPhone (smartphones), Mac (personal computers), iPad (multi-purpose tablets), as well as wearables and accessories, which include AirPods, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Beats products, and the HomePod.

Meridian, Apple, Investment