5 Popular Stocks to Buy Right Now

3. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 127

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) ranks 3rd on the list of the 10 popular stocks to buy right now. The California-based consumer electronics and software company was founded in 1976. The company operates over 510 stores in 25 countries, including China, Australia, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Macao, and Mexico.

In 2020, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) paid $50 million for self-learning AI video company Vilynx. The AI platform is used to produce video previews and suggests comparable content through the use of computer vision.

On August 2, Loop Capital analyst Ananda Baruah raised Apple Inc.’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) price target to $165 for $150 per share and kept his Buy rating on the stock. The analyst commented that continued average price gains could position the stock for a strong 2H 2021 than expected.

The company has a market cap of $2.41 trillion and offers a dividend yield of 0.60%. In the fiscal third quarter of 2021, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) had an EPS of $1.30, beating estimates by $1.00. In the fiscal third quarter, the company’s revenue was $81.40 billion, beating consensus estimates of $72.93 billion. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) has gained 38% in the last twelve months. 

There were 123 hedge funds that reported owning stakes in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) at the end of the first quarter. The total value of these stakes at the end of Q1 is $130 billion.

ClearBridge Investments mentioned Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in its Q1 2021 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:

“As we actively manage holdings and position sizes, we look to regularly recycle capital into more compelling opportunities. Maintaining our valuation discipline, we sharply reduced our position in Apple, whose shares more than doubled following our initial purchase in mid-2019 with an earnings multiple rising from the low-to-mid teens to nearly 30x.”