“Even though Steve Jobs took a medical leave in January, Apple Inc. (AAPL) remains as innovative and creative as it was in 1984 when Jobs unveiled the Macintosh to wide acclaim,” Gene Marcial writes for BusinessWeek.
“That creativity was reaffirmed on June 8 when the company held its Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco and unveiled new products and plans. The offerings appeared to meet with widespread approval from customers and shareholders alike—and Apple watchers showed little dismay that CEO Jobs didn’t make an appearance,” Marcial writes.
MacDailyNews Take: Perhaps because we can read and comprehend the words “end of June.”
Marcial continues, “‘Apple continues to meet or beat expectations with its innovative products,’ says Terry Morris, senior equity manager at National Penn Investors Trust, which has assets under management of $1 billion and owns Apple shares. And the stock, he adds, is still underpriced based on an estimated earnings growth rate of 18% to 20% over the next three to five years. More important, Apple ‘has momentum behind it, as people surely love to buy its products and its shares,’ he says.”
“What will be debated is whether Jobs will, indeed, return to Apple by month’s end. In spite of this unresolved question, Wall Street has stayed bullish on Apple, with 33 analysts recommending buying the stock and six rating it a hold, according to data from Bloomberg. Only two recommend selling it,” Marcial reports.
“As of now, the big question is whether Jobs will return,” Marcial writes. “The sooner that issue is resolved, the better for Apple and its stock. As it stands, a well-received public appearance by the man in the black turtleneck will give Apple bulls one more reason to smile.”
Full article here.
