Mechanics Bank Trust Department Has $42.25 Million Stock Holdings in Apple Inc. $AAPL

Mechanics Bank Trust Department lessened its stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 17.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 165,906 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 36,268 shares during the quarter. Apple accounts for approximately 5.9% of Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings, making the stock its biggest position. Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings in Apple were worth $42,245,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 2.0% during the third quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 789,636 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $201,065,000 after acquiring an additional 15,299 shares in the last quarter. Crown Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in Apple by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Crown Wealth Group LLC now owns 29,415 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $7,490,000 after acquiring an additional 1,315 shares in the last quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Apple by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 32,770 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $8,344,000 after purchasing an additional 2,481 shares during the last quarter. Letson Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 30.8% in the 3rd quarter. Letson Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,612 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $410,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Railway Pension Investments Ltd raised its stake in shares of Apple by 49.5% in the third quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd now owns 726,652 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $185,027,000 after purchasing an additional 240,600 shares during the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple reports say Apple will turn Siri into a ChatGPT-style chatbot (reportedly using Google’s Gemini) later this year — a major AI product pivot that could re-accelerate services engagement and investor sentiment. Bloomberg: Apple to revamp Siri as a built-in chatbot
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Apple is developing an AI wearable “pin” (screenless assistant) and racing to match OpenAI/others add another potential new hardware revenue stream and extend Apple’s AI narrative. Product optionality tends to support higher multiples if execution follows. TechCrunch: Apple developing an AI wearable
• Positive Sentiment: Counterpoint/market reports show Apple regained top smartphone share in China with >28% shipment growth in Q4 — a strong regional performance that supports iPhone unit/ASP assumptions going into earnings. Reuters/24/7 Wall St.: Apple’s surge in China
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support is building: Evercore added Apple to a tactical outperform list and bullish price targets (and other firms reiterated confidence), which can amplify any positive earnings surprise. Evercore reaffirmation / analyst coverage
• Positive Sentiment: MarketBeat and others argue Apple’s sell-off looks oversold technically (RSI at multiyear lows) and fundamentals remain intact — this sets up a potentially asymmetric upside into earnings if results beat. MarketBeat: Sell-off may be overdone
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple previews and threads outline accounting items and expectations ahead of the Jan. 29 report — important for short-term volatility but outcome-dependent. Zacks: Wall Street earnings expectations
• Neutral Sentiment: Jim Cramer and other commentators are defending Apple/Big Tech exposure and debating the recent pullback — helpful for sentiment but not a direct fundamental driver. CNBC: Jim Cramer on Magnificent Seven
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple/Netflix Best Picture nomination and Funding Circle adding Apple Pay listings are PR/brand positives but unlikely to move the stock materially. Benzinga: Oscar nominations
• Negative Sentiment: Apple asked an Indian court to block the competition authority from seeking global financials in an app-store probe — prolonged regulatory fights could raise compliance costs and create uncertainty in a key growth market. Reuters: Apple asks Indian court to stop antitrust body
• Negative Sentiment: Apple China announced short-term discounts on products — could provide a sales boost but may signal promotional pressure or slowing near-term demand in the region. Reuters: Apple China discounts
• Negative Sentiment: Portfolio moves (e.g., Cypress Funds trimming ~29k shares) and macro shocks (tariff/geopolitical fears linked to market drops) add selling pressure into earnings season. TipRanks: Cypress Funds cuts stake

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on AAPL. Wall Street Zen cut Apple from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 9th. Robert W. Baird set a $300.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Argus set a $325.00 price target on shares of Apple and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Apple from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $350.00 target price on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, January 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $281.70.

Apple Stock Performance

AAPL opened at $248.35 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The company has a market cap of $3.65 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.25, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.09. The company’s 50 day moving average is $269.93 and its 200 day moving average is $249.53. Apple Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.21 and a 12-month high of $288.62.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The iPhone maker reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.11. Apple had a net margin of 26.92% and a return on equity of 164.05%. The business had revenue of $102.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $101.65 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.64 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Apple Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 13th. Investors of record on Monday, November 10th were issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 10th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 3,752 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.23, for a total transaction of $1,017,654.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 15,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,095,030.54. The trade was a 19.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Profile

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.