Polen Focus Growth Strategy Exited Apple (AAPL) in Q2. Here's Why

Polen Capital, an investment management company, released its “Polen Focus Growth Strategy” second quarter 2025 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. The market sentiment shifted in the second quarter, from a sharp decline to a V-shaped recovery. In the second quarter, the strategy returned 9.36% (gross) and 9.15% (net) compared to 17.84% for the Russell 1000 Growth Index and 10.94% for the S&P 500 Index. In addition, please check the fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2025.

In its second quarter 2025 investor letter, Polen Focus Growth Strategy highlighted stocks such as Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL). Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is an American multinational company that designs, manufactures, and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and accessories. The one-month return of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) was 5.45%, and its shares lost 5.13% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On July 21, 2025, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) stock closed at $212.48 per share with a market capitalization of $3.174 trillion.

Polen Focus Growth Strategy stated the following regarding Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in its second quarter 2025 investor letter:

"We eliminated our position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) early in the quarter. As a reminder, our initial investment thesis on the company (which we added in July 2024) anticipated accelerating revenue and earnings growth driven by the launch of Apple Intelligence, which we expected to trigger a new iPhone upgrade cycle. Unfortunately, many of the most compelling Apple Intelligence features are significantly delayed, calling into question the timing of the reacceleration. Furthermore, tariffs present a predictable and persistent headwind, as most Apple products are made in China and shipped globally. Given these uncertainties and the presence of more attractive opportunities elsewhere, we felt it best to move on."

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is in 8th position on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 159 hedge fund portfolios held Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) at the end of the first quarter, which was 166 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock.

In another article, we covered Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and shared the list of AI stocks analysts are tracking closely. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q2 2025 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.