“The last time that Apple Inc. shares nose-dived, investors were worried about the company’s overexposure to a slowing Chinese economy last summe,” Paresh Dave and David Pierson report for The Los Angeles Times. “Now the technology giant’s stock is plunging again — this time over fears about poor iPhone sales, not just in China but across the globe.”
“Apple isn’t commenting on iPhone sales, but financial analysts said the company’s trimming orders to its Asian suppliers suggests that the iPhone 6S hasn’t sold as well as expected,” Dave and Pierson report. “That dovetails with recent research from Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty, who predicted an annual sales decline in Apple’s most popular product for the first time in 2016.”
“The specter of sagging iPhone sales underscores the growing uncertainty rippling across the global economy now that China, one of its chief drivers, appears to be running low on steam,” Dave and Pierson report. “That’s bad news for big corporations like Apple, which is betting on sustained, massive growth in the world’s second-largest economy to secure fresh profits.”
In pre-market trading, shares of Apple are down $2.75 (2.73%) to $97.95.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Shell game.
Let the buybacks proceed apace!
SEE ALSO:
Apple stock slumps near $100 amid ‘iPhone sales worries’ – January 6, 2016
Wall Street’s freak out over declining iPhone sales is overblown – January 6, 2016
Piper Jaffray: Apple’s iPhone production cut do not necessarily presage sales decline – January 6, 2016
Foxconn plans ‘rare’ holiday as iPhone output fears rattle investors – January 6, 2016
Apple to release Q116 earnings, webcast live conference call on January 26th – January 5, 2016
I agree completely. I wish Apple would forgo the dividend and use all available cash to buyback shares. Given the incomprehensible PE ratios among Apple and it’s competitors this will provide by far the most effective use of cash for shareholders.
My belief is Apple would be better served by additional revenue streams from acquisitions (as a backup for declining iPhone sales) and increasing overall revenue. So far, the buybacks have done nothing positive for boosting Apple’s share value. Look at Microsoft’s low EPS compared to Apple’s EPS near 10 and yet Microsoft stock is becoming more and more valuable while Apple stock continues to lose value.
I would prefer dividends to buybacks because mutual fund institutions might buy more Apple stock if the dividends were higher. As it is, Apple’s dividend is even lower than Microsoft’s dividend and I think Apple can afford to do better. I don’t want Apple to take on more debt with additional buybacks mainly because it makes me uncomfortable seeing the company saddle itself with debt and shareholders aren’t getting anything out of it.
Guys – dont panic!!! Look at the facts!!! (see 2015 charts) and the increase YoY!!!!!
http://investor.apple.com/secfiling.cfm?filingid=1193125-16-422528&cik=320193
Apple EPS $5.68 (2013), 6.45 (2014), 9.22 (2015)
AMZN EPS $.59 (2013), -0.52 (2014), .24 (2015)
AMZN YOY revenue growth is going to be flat or down at 18% compared to 28% for AAPL in 2015.
Maybe Tim needs to get a Napoleon complex like Bezos and start acting megalomaniac and then AAPL can be a psycho stock like AMZN.
I’m beginning to think that everyone here concerned about the AAPL stock price needs a hard reset. Many have bought AAPL because they believe in the company and its products, which is a fine reason to buy the stock. Do keep in mind that the company’s success was built on a maniacal focus on products with scant attention to what Wall Street wanted because they don’t know jack shit about product.
So why are so many whining that Tim should focus more of his attention on the stock price? Do any of you really believe that if Steve were still in charge he would give a shit about the stock price? Of course not.
I’m sorry that AAPL has not done well for you this year and I hope loyal AAPL investors do better in 2016. But you’ve got to stop behaving like Wall Street analysts.
If you are predisposed to beat up Tim then focus on product quality issues and not the stock price.
If Apple started to produce market leading products and quality reliable software to go with them the share price would improve. 2015 was a year of below par products and buggy software. The last nail in the coffin of “it just works” and other marketing myths has left the market. If the public wakes up to the fact that Apple has been selling mediocre products masked by Apples very successful marketing haze in 2016 Apple will be looking at a sharp decline. What Apple needs to do is stop blaming analyists and improve its products and stop living on past glories.
AAPL is volatile because it CAN be so easily manipulated by hedge funds and brokers. They make money when the stock moves, and they make more when it moves more. It doesn’t matter which way it goes. They can move huge blocks of shares, and that causes the price to move. It has nothing to do with company performance in any way, except that they use “bad” news as an excuse to push the stock price. How many times has bad news about the supply chain turned out to be baseless? The stock still gets hammered anyway.
I haven’t seen even one news story in the last few weeks that agrees with any of the reasons you give for stock price tumbles. They’re all currently focused on supposed reductions in component orders. Who would it serve if Apple if they announced they were reducing orders for 6S components and phones because they were planning to announce an iPhone 7 in April? Well, it would serve Samsung, HTC, and LG, and that’s about all. So I don’t see there approach changing.
In relation to its peers AAPL has one of the lowest institutional ownerships at about 55% making it harder to manipulate than its peers except through convincing individual stockholders to churn.
You cn’t keep a good company down forever.
All Apple needs to keep doing is being a consumer and user champion and continue being the Oracle, leader and world changer that it has,
Ok, Apple, now that the stock has tanked, start tanking up on those buybacks! At this price, you might buy back half the company with cash on hand!
The people that fall for this stock manipulation sky is falling things is really stupid. lol If Apple was completely broke and owe billions then yeah panic.
Wall Street is a huge Casino and the house always wins. Apple is not a Casino. It is a manufacturer of real products that make a positive difference in the world. Wall Street is not Apple. Let Wall Street tank.
Surprisingly, a huge company likes Apple doesn’t have a spoke persons to represent when it needs to defend for the company. It is silence as a lamb.
You should not expect any comment until the earnings call on the 26th of January. Between the end of a quarter and the official earnings release, public companies in the US follow a “quiet period”, where management is not allowed to have any business discussions with analysts and investors. They typically won’t have any significant public disclosures during that time either, although they are legally allowed to do so.
My cynical take on the practice to not make legal public disclosures during this time is because they want to make sure the large investors get tipped off first. This is for all companies, not just Apple.
Yes, WELL WELL below $100. Like 2% below.
A March iPhone 6Sc would have one purpose: boost iPhone sales so there is no annual reduction in 2016.