“Today we have a perfect example of why Steve Jobs hates bloggers. Do you really believe that the iPhone 5 release will be delayed until the fall, at which time it will be released alongside an iPad 3? Seriously? You think Apple is ready to freeze the iPhone market for three months and cannibalize sales of the iPad 2?” Jason Schwarz asks via Seeking Alpha.
“When it comes to Apple news, there is no gatekeeper, no filter and no editor-in-chief demanding reliable sources,” Schwarz writes. “It’s a bunch of conjecture supported by vague sources supposedly coming from Apple (yeah, right!) or some unconfirmed (and uncomfirmable!) Chinese supplier. We’ve seen it before and we’ll see it again.”
“Unfortunately, this wild west of a blogosphere leaves stocks like Apple vulnerable to irrational price swings based on false reports,” Schwarz writes. “We all know that Apple trades according to the calendar just as much as it trades according to fundamentals, so any information related to product release dates is capable of moving the stock.”
Schwarz writes, “Back on February 18, when Apple was trading at $360, a rumor was generated from analysts at Yuanta Securities with alleged supply chain contacts that the iPad 2 would be delayed until June. At that time, Apple stock was ready for a technical correction, and it used the rumor to aggressively sell off. Over the course of two trading days, the stock sold off $20. The rumor was so widely reported that investors were shocked when Apple announced a March event and even more shocked when Jobs (who bloggers had declared had six weeks to live) appeared to announce that the iPad would hit stores on the 10th of the month. Obviously, that rumor proved to be a joke — but the dramatic price movement in Apple stock was no laughing matter. When a stock is ready to technically sell off, it will find a reason … and that false iPad report was too conveniently leaked at the opportune time. It reeked of hedge fund involvement. The proof was in the volatile price action of February 22.”
Much, much more in the full article – highly recommended – here.