Apple shares hit by new analyst outlook
Apple shares slipped in Wednesday’s US trading session, after Wells Fargo’s new analyst of the stock issued an underwhelming research note on it.
Apple shares closed 1.3% lower at $169.08, continuing the downward trend over the past week or so.
So far, however, pre-market trading activity suggests a marginally brighter open for the stock, Thursday.
Market Perform
New Wells Fargo analyst, Aaron Rakers, gave the Apple Stock a ‘Market Perform’ rating, in his first research note on it for the US bank. That rating comes as the firm has few new plans to help drive the stock beyond the general market performance.
“We believe strength in shares of Apple have, in part, been driven by a 'chase-the-performance' trade ahead of the iPhone 8/X product cycle," Rakers wrote in his research note.
"We think the shares could now see increased volatility, with a focus on incremental derivative demand and mix data points over the coming months," Rakers said.
He added: "Given the tight memory supply/demand dynamics, Apple's results could be negatively affected by lack of supply or higher-than-expected prices.”
It’s true that between the launch of the new iPhone X and sales of it, investors were uncertain of the company’s performance. And, after being buoyed by better-than-expected demand for Apple’s latest piece of iPhone tech, its share price has begun to slide a little.
Rakers gave Apple shares a price target of $195 in his note, some 15% higher than Wednesday’s closing price.
Still in favour with some investors
While this latest outlook for the Apple stock may not have come as a huge surprise to some, there are other investors who remain fans of the business.
The latest filings information from the US Securities and Exchange Commission, show Warren Buffet has upped his holdings of Apple in the latest quarter.
The famously tech averse institutional investor added 3.9 million Apple shares in the third quarter. The filing also shows the Berkshire Hathaway CEO sold 17 million IBM shares.
They are the only two tech stocks Buffet owns.
