Billionaires decide to sell shares of this well-known stock

Apple (AAPL 1.84%) it needs a little introduction. In fact, the iPhone maker is now the world’s most valuable company thanks to anticipation for its new artificial intelligence (AI) platform Apple Intelligence and some recent weakness in the rival’s shares. Microsoftwhich Apple replaced in the first place.

Not all investors were impressed with the tech giant, however, as a number of high-profile billionaires sold shares in the second quarter, according to SEC 13-F filings. Let’s take a look at three of the top investors who sold Apple stock and what those sales could mean for you.

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1. Berkshire Hathaway

No investor gets more attention than Warren Buffett, and some investors were stunned when his Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A -0.29%) (BRK.B 0.07%) conglomerate has offloaded much of its stake in Apple, a company it rates as “probably the best business I know of in the world.”

Buffett has also said he views Apple as Berkshire’s third-largest business, after its wholly-owned insurance and railroad subsidiaries.

Given Buffett’s past comments about Apple, it might come as a surprise that Berkshire is shedding its iPhone maker’s stock, following a similar move in the first quarter. In the second quarter, Berkshire Hathaway sold 389.4 million shares, or about half of its stake in the company, worth about $80 billion.

It was unclear why Berkshire decided to sell Apple shares. Buffett hinted at the threat of a higher capital gains tax rate that appeared to have disappeared earlier this year, and the Apple sale helps eliminate Berkshire’s tax liability. Specifically, Berkshire keeps that money in Treasury bills instead of investing it in other stocks.

Buffett’s comments in Berkshire’s shareholder letter show that he believes the stock market is expensive, and likely sees Apple similarly, as it trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.

2. BY Shaw

David Shaw is the billionaire behind the DE Shaw hedge fund. Shaw is a computer scientist known for his mathematical and algorithmic investment strategy called quantitative trading.

DE Shaw was also a seller of Apple stock, shedding 4.8 million shares to raise about $1 billion. The hedge fund still owns nearly 10 million shares of Apple.

Shaw has owned the stock since the first quarter of 2004, meaning the stock is up nearly 50,000% since the fund started buying it. While it’s unclear why DE Shaw is selling the stock, Apple’s valuation likely played a role, and taking profits after a 20-year period makes sense.

It’s hard to blame the fund for selling shares after a gain of nearly 500 times its initial investment.

3. Susquehanna International Group

Susquehanna billionaire Jeff Yass also sold Apple shares in the second quarter. Like DE Shaw, Susquehanna is also known for its quantitative trading strategy, and that fund disposed of 2.6 million Apple shares in the second quarter, leaving it with 6.2 million shares.

Susquehanna has also long owned Apple stock, first buying it in the third quarter of 2008. In other words, it also has significant earnings to cash in, so it’s no surprise to see it sell the stock now that the valuation is touched. almost as long as it has been in modern history.

Should you sell Apple?

Before you think about selling Apple, it’s worth noting that all three of these billionaire-led funds still own some Apple stock, and all have held the stock for at least a few years.

At this stage, Apple’s potential gains appear more limited due to its valuation and market capitalization of around $3.5 trillion, but its economic opportunity remains as strong as ever, especially as Apple Intelligence looks to strengthen further. much installed base. Therefore, there is no need to sell Apple stock right now.