“It’s not often–like almost never–that you see a downgrade parade like the one for Apple this morning, that doesn’t follow earnings or some kind of catalyst,” Jim Goldman reports for CNBC. “But such is the case today for Apple [AAPL $111.25, -$16.99 (-13.25%)], from the likes of RBC Capital, Morgan Stanley and Barclays (though Barclays merely reinitiated with a lower price target.) Morgan Stanley took its target from $178 to $115. RBC went from $200 to $140.”
Goldman asks, “So why now, why all of a sudden and why so much pessimism around these shares?”
“Well, first things first: fundamentals be damned. I don’t think this is necessarily about what Apple itself might be doing wrong. It seems to be far more “macro” than “micro.” I spoke to one analyst this morning who says the economy is such a mess right now with so much concern about the consumer, that a year from now no one wants to look back and say ‘how could you have possibly missed that?’ Whether Apple products are still selling well or not,” Goldman writes.
“I suspect that if Apple misses its numbers in a few weeks, this analysis this morning will look pretty spot on. But if Apple blows through those expectations, and beats, these analysts can seek cover under the guise that these concerns today, mirroring the macro-economic condition, could gain a foothold at any time over the next year or so and they thought that now would be a good time to sound the alarm bell,” Goldman writes.
“Trouble is, this kind of the thing tends to become a self-fulfilling prophecy, which means this analysis–any analysis–can’t be wrong. Even if it might be,” Goldman writes. “And that’s a rough place for investors to be if they’re trying to, well, invest.”
Much more in the full article – highly recommended 0 here.
@ ChrissyZero
Biter.
Apple should deserve it because APPLE SUCKS!!!!!!!! LOOK AT THEM THEY ARE NOTHING!!!@#$
Down about 50% from its highs, lowest in over 16 months.
shoulda, woulda, coulda sold….
Look at the emotion in all the preceding posts. THIS is why AAPL is taking a dump right now. Wall Street is just adjusting its target BECAUSE investor sentiment is the pits.
Don’t blame the messenger, or the message. Blame the investor that doesn’t know why he/she bought in the first place, and is scared shitless they are going to lose whatever they have invested.
Morgan Stanley seems to have triggered this “sky is falling” FUD. Morgan Stanley themselves are currently in a state of economic free-fall, and we’re supposed to listen to their analysts now?!
Go back to sleep America, go back to sleep…
The 15 all-time dumbest predictions about Apple
http://www.macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/15389/
MacDailyNews Take: No list of dumb Apple predictions can be complete without this year’s gem: “I am putting a sell on Apple, the company that created the iPhone,” Laura Goldman, investment advisor, LSG Capital, May 21, 2007. AAPL closed at $111.98 that day. Apple has risen approximately 70% since Goldman’s “sell” recommendation.
I’d like to formerly thank Barney Frank for his staggering incompetence and Nancy Pelosi for her unwavering partisanship and wild inability to get her Indians on reservation (92 noes! – and after that searing, albeit complete bullsh*t laden speech – Wow!)
And let’s not forget Paulson, Barnanke, the short sellers, supposed analysts, etc. etc.
You’ve made my $103/sh purchase possible. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
Here’s hoping these a$$holes in Congress keep this chaos going. Wall Street is ON SALE!
“When times get tough people buy tools not toys.”
So, you’ve been bought. Cheaply, I imagine.
@Big Al
I hope your cheeseburger-grease clogged arteries can hold out for another few years so you’ll live to eat those words. Your Neocon buddies cooked up all those new 21st-century ‘financial products’ while simultaneously ‘deregulating’ the industry.
Remember Phil Gramm? Until recently one of McCain’s campaign co-chairs. He went to work for Swiss bankers UBS. Swiss Banks? Get it? He is neck deep in an investigation the Feds are conducting on tax evasion. Specifically, UBS hired Phil to ‘create’ some new financial opportunities for them. Phil set up a nice operation where UBS ops came back stateside to organize events where those Patriotic Americans worth $20mil or more, and wanting to stash some cash where the tax man cannot cometh, would be obliged. Phil resigned when a disgruntled UBS employee turned evidence in a Miami court a couple of months ago. The story only ran on the NYTimes and has somehow stayed buried but stay tuned. This list could make the DC madams’ list look tame.
Me? I try to listen to both sides and I’d like to believe in free markets but…. BUT…. that assumes that the people in charge can be trusted. The so-called ‘moralists’ will be remembered as the biggest sucks on the middle- and working-classes EVER.
You? Just a pawn being raped by the same swine you adore. And now the rest of us have to suffer for your voting habits. Keep listening to Papa Bill and Rush so you can still fall asleep feeling righteous… for a little while longer. I’ll keep watch in the real world and get my info from as large a variety of sources as i can manage.
ps-man i miss Hunter right now…
@OBill-Wan Kenobi,
60% of the Democrats in the House voted for the bill while only
33% of the Republicans did. So, tell us again how this was the
Democrats’ fault.
I agree with Former Apple TV Fan, I’ve been looking at getting an appleTV for a while now, I was hoping they’d put a DVR in it, but they didn’t, so I didn’t buy one. But if they put DVR capabilities with the next version, I’d most definitely buy one. Especially if they make the hard drive 200 GB +
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LMAO @MacLovin posting in COMPLETELY wrong thread – thats Apple fanbois superior IQ for you
————-
Apple is an easy target for share traders to kill and so kill it they will, (ironically Apple will be destroyed by the immense heartless greed that drives them 😀 ) – as it has NO obvious long term future with DELUDED as hell, NARCISTIC SOCIOPATH Jobs, who is as deluded as the desciples/fanbois hes created. I mean what other sort of mind set could give someone the post – labotamy decision that manipulating diet regime ALONE would make an efficacious cancer therapy – to have such a GOD like complex/ego that you think you can transcend well established medical knowledge is clearly NOT good for personal survival.
Unless you can change such a fallible resistant mind set, their mortality rate can only ever increase exponentially.
@ Arnold Ziffel
Because the Dems could have passed that legislation all on their own, genius.
@ 4th Amendment
I recommend two thing for you to do:
1) Listen to the following podcast – This American Life: The Giant Pool of Money.
2) Google the Community Reinvestment Act
“All the gains since my last purchase some six months ago have been wiped out, and then some.”
Welcome to investing in overpriced stocks 101.
“My question is why do so many people have stock when it seems to be an extremely silly game, played with real money?”
Yeah things like Building companies. Producing Products. Employing People. Raising money to do it by selling part of the company and therefore an interest in the success of the venture. Silly.
The point of an investment in company stock is that you can lose no more than your investment. Therefore investors can back promising companies without the possibility of being liable for all a company’s debts should it fail. Should the company do well, they get dividend and/or appreciation of the stock price. Should it do badly, worst case, they end up with nothing. How Silly that cornerstone of our financial system seems. Please, get a basic financial education before commenting on the subject. A stock isn’t some magic abstract thing, it’s a part ownership of a company and therefore a share of the profits that company will generate (or not generate if it’s sales slow).It’s worth exactly what somebody will give you today to own that piece of the company’s assets and future income.
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