During trading last Wednesday, November 7th, Apple (AAPL) hit a new all-time high of $192.68. Today, with three full trading days behind us since that all-time high, Apple stands at $153.76.
Ouch.
That’s a loss of $38.92 or 20.2% (or about $33 billion in market value) in just over three business days. Apple’s stock chart looks like the profile of El Capitan. Look out below! It’s a base-jumper’s dream.
So, what went wrong at Apple? Nothing. Debt-free Apple, by most credible reports, successfully launched the iPhone in the UK and Germany over the weekend, continues to sell boxes of Macs, iPods, iPhones, and Mac OS X Leopard as if they’re full of (mini) hot cakes (that box is so small, you’d think Greenpeace would issue a laudatory press release), Steve Jobs is still CEO, that over $15 billion in cash and short-term investments didn’t get misplaced, and we even saw some guy walk out of Best Buy on Saturday with an Apple TV!
Apple is a victim of larger market forces: banking issues, oil prices, housing and consumer credit concerns, the usual. Jim Cramer says that Apple is a victim of “fear,” as the market is showing a “sudden aversion to any momentum name” right now:
I say not to be aggressive; there’s no reason to be. I told people I’d have taken off half of any position in Apple and RIM higher, but I see no reason to add to the position right now. It just doesn’t do much to buy that half back up here.
Gee, thanks, Jim, couldn’t you have told us to take half of our AAPL off the table last Wednesday, instead telling us today what you would have done last week? 
In after-hours trading so far, traders have shaved another $0.06 off AAPL taking it down to $153.70.
So, what do you think, is this the bottom for Apple? Is it time to buy? Or are we in for more pummeling?
At market close, Apple’s market value stands at $134.13B.
For reference, some selected current market values:
• Microsoft (MSFT) – $312.28B
• Google (GOOG) – $197.29B
• Cisco (CSCO) – $177.31B
• Intel (INTC) – $147.87B
• IBM (IBM) – $139.79B
• Apple (AAPL) – $134.13B
• Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) – $122.56B
• Disney (DIS) – $62.15B
• Dell (DELL) – $60.75B
• Sony (SNE) – $46.85B
• Yahoo! (YHOO) – $33.19B
• Amazon (AMZN) – $31.97B
• Adobe (ADBE) – $24.21B
• RealNetworks (RNWK) – $950.96M
• Napster (NAPS) – $151.07M
AAPL quote via NASDAQ here.
To be fair, he’s been telling people to sell half of their AAPL holdings for at least two weeks now.
-jcr
it’s amazing how comments people make about the economy can destroy stocks…
That’s right. I heard him say it multiple times. Ignored him multiple times and am now paying for it. Although ultimately AAPL will go higher than 192.68.
The European iPhone launch has gone off tremendously. As long as the stock price hasn’t dropped because of something Apple said or did, this is just a panic. Don’t sell your shares now, and buy more if you can. This company is going to be reporting stellar profits and growth every quarter for the next two years at least. The iPhone will make Apple into an even bigger giant than it already is, and christmas sales of the new Macs with Leopard and the new iPods will be through the roof.
Remember december 2006…AAPL hit a low of $56/share. I’m kicking myself for not having bought more during that dip. This time I’m not going to miss the boat.
It’s a shame that it affects the tech stocks…you would think that people would sell their other stuff and invest in AAPL as an alternative…emotional dimwit daytrader…Buy AAPL or sit and wait.
Happy? ;P
Finally you guys are getting with reality.
This is JUST AS IMPORTANT, or even more so, than all the good news.
When a site only cheers, and never boos or at least scratches it’s head, that’s when the site isn’t much use.
You guys should change editorially to allow for bad things that happen too, like this article – http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071112/wall_street.html?.v=52 – which contains the lines –
“Apple Inc. fell more than 7 percent after analysts described the weekend European launch of the iPod as disappointing.”
That’s the first thing I could find today to explain the extra drop in Apple, and you guys should be dealing with THAT part of things as well.
It happens that I think Apple is very much a good company and all that, and it’s a killer buy now as a stock, but the kind of drops we’re seeing are not just about the general market, they reflect general ignorance about Apple and it’s core strength as a company, which is very solid.
That ignorance is fostered by sites that don’t speak about doubt, or at least don’t teach and talk more about the REALITY of the company.
IT’S NOT ALL ABOUT iPHONES.
And people need to know that, otherwise you continue to get reactions based SOLELY on what happens with “10’s of thousands” of iPhones, which is shortsided and ignorant.
The problem is Apple has too much debt and no new products for the holidays. What they really need is like some kind of new product, something to get people talking about Apple again.
I told you to sell
Remember? Even Apple can’t weather a post real estate bubble economic recession.
Yea, now you remember.
BUT NO!!! You all labeled me a troll and went ahead and bought.
Well now you can just keep on losing. I’m in cash, spread around under $100,000 in each bank. Some gold bars in the vault.
My bills are very low every month and I sold my house last week.
I’m even collecting firewood, storing gas and canned food. You think I’m crazy, but I’ve lived through one of these before.
Imagine a lot of people out of work.
Now you know why Bush ran the illegals out of the country.
Perhaps now would be an interesting time to post and updated ranking of market capitalization for MS, Google, Apple, Intel, Dell, HP, etc.? If we gloat when we’re up we need to face the music when we drop…
Jim Cramer, Novemeber 7, 2007:
AAPL, GOOG, RIMM: “A tech trio that will rise into year-end.”
http://aapl.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/07/cramer-on-bloggingstocks-a-tech-trio-that-will-rise-into-year-e/
@ MDN
“Gee, thanks, Jim, couldn’t you have told us to take half of our AAPL off the table last Wednesday”
Actually, Jim has been telling viewers to take some profit on AAPL for over a week. You just need to watch Mad Money every day.
MW: ‘trying’ (times. don’t panic)
Folks, this has nothing to with Apple, whether you’re arguing to buy or to sell the stock. The question you should be asking at this time is “Should I be in the stock market at all?” We are in for some nasty times, folks. It might be a good idea to put some of your money in gold.
“When a site only cheers, and never boos or at least scratches it’s head, that’s when the site isn’t much use.”
Especially since it’s not an investing site. If you are taking your investing advice from these forums, then you deserve to get hammered. Which, when you think about it makes your comment kind of silly.
MB,
Apple has been operating debt free for a long time. Try again…
@ Meanguy
The article is bogus. I have not heard nor read anywhere else that analysts were disappointed with initial Iphone sales in Europe. Also, they refer to the Iphone launch as the Ipod launch in that article so how credible can that story really be?
@Joop – agree with all of that.
@ Stock Trader – I gotta just mention…
“Now you know why Bush ran the illegals out of the country.”
Uh, it’s looking to me like you’ve moved some of your cash from your banks into crack. That is a seriously reality dissonant statement.
MB, you’re surely kidding about the debt I hope. Apple has many BILLIONS in the bank. NO DEBT.
And, yes, they have lots of awesome products for the holiday buying season of course. iPod touch anyone? New Nanos, etc.
The European iPhone launch went so luke-warm because the carriers didn’t come up with any nice pricing plans.
A “flat-rate” that caps your data-speed to ISDN after the first 200MB of data just barely deserves this name.
The Telcos just take the monthly payments to AAPL and put them on-top of the normal charges.
And no launch in Switzerland in sight.
@ gzero
Are you serious? Could you not detect the sarcasm in that post? I have been long Apple stock for 4 years now so I am very aware of their current financial position.
MUST STAND FOR MILTON BURLE..
quote from the nineties perhaps!
ROFL…
George W. Bush has the economy tanking. I thought republicans were supposed to be more fiscally conservative, yet Bill Clinton left us with a $5 trillion+ surplus.
How on earth do you fight two different wars without raising taxes?
Hold on boys! We’re all taking it in the Rear Hole now!
Jim owns a bunch of AAPL.
Jim tells people to take some off the table.
Jim dumps his bunch until panic reaches the regular Joe.
Jim buys a bunch at a lower cost basis.
Jim rides it back up.
Rinse.
Repeat.
I’ve been watching AAPL for 4 years and then Wed morning I buy…sucks for me