Apple stock continued to tumble Friday, closing at $105.76 — down more than 20 percent from its all-time high of $134.50 earlier this year.
The precipitous drop is in line with dozens of other big-name stocks that have taken a turn for the worse in 2015, but what’s driving the downturn?
Photo: USA Today
The biggest factors behind the stock market’s big tumble are fear of a tech bubble that’s about to burst and a documented slowdown in China’s economy. There’s also talk of a “death cross” for Apple stock (that’s when “a shorter-term moving average bearishly crosses a longer-term moving average,” according to Schaeffer’s Investment Research).
For those who haven’t been keeping track, China has become an increasingly large part of Apple’s business — with Tim Cook saying the country will soon overtake the United States as Apple’s biggest market. But a steady stream of bad economic news out of the Asian country has taken its toll on markets worldwide.
Another possible impact on Apple’s stock price is the fact that more U.S. mobile carriers are abandoning the concept of smartphone subsidies. This could induce customers to hold on to their smartphones for longer rather than upgrading every year, although some have argued the change could actually spur iPhone sales.
Toni Sacconaghi, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein, told CNBC today that Apple’s stock will likely continue to underperform so long as iPhone sales stay depressed.
With that said, it’s probably not time for Jony Ive and Tim Cook to start mailing off their CVs to fast food companies just yet — regardless of how amusing a sitcom that scenario could result in.
Apple stock is still showing year-over-year growth, and a report released yesterday reveals that the company’s share of global smartphone sales continues to rise.
Hang tight, AAPL shareholders!
This story has been updated with Apple’s closing stock price.
Via: USA Today
Luke Dormehl is a U.K.-based journalist and author, with a background working in documentary film for Channel 4 and the BBC. He is the author of The Apple Revolution and The Formula: How Algorithms Solve All Our Problems … and Create More, both published by Penguin/Random House. His tech writing has also appeared in Wired, Fast Company, Techmeme and other publications.
12 responses to “It’s not a great time to own Apple stock”
Isn’t that common with Apple though if you review every single year’s stock earnings prior to an Apple Announcement of a bunch of new toys? Every new iPhone upcomer, boom the stock goes high, then plummets if the iPhone sucks.
It is a great time to be buying AAPL, however. This is a fire sale without any smoke. Upcoming holiday, new products in the pipeline, Apple TV and whatever that automobile thing is on the horizon — to sell now would be short sighted.
Every company is affected not just Apple.
But then I can’t help feeling the many glees out that see this happening.
Just for comparison google is down by $24.66, Amazon is down by $16,20.
There is no winner….anyway it is a casino where the element of luck is important and the rest is bullish*t.
Actually, this is a fantastic time to:
1. BUY APPLE STOCK at low prices
2. OWN APPLE STOCK LONG – meaning keep it for years so you make a huge profit as the stock goes up again.
Apple is the most highly manipulated stock. Stock pundits talk it down in order to make a killing by buying it low and selling it high. The stock holders who keep Apple long are the ones who benefit the most as the stock inevitably goes up again.
I feel sad for you. You don’t have a great understanding of things.
There is no unwritten rule that Apple stock price will eventually rise.
A big part of what has supported the Apple stock price is their own buyback scheme. Every time there is a price slip, Apple step in and buy to restore confidence.
Unfortunately there is a flaw in this approach which is that you can’t buy back more than 10% of your own stock in one year. At some point the confidence chain crumbles. The only people buying Apple stock are Apple and a handful of irrational fanboys like you.
Apple is a one trick pony. The entire business is build on a single, expensive and increasingly undifferentiated product. The market cap, even at “corrected” level is madness. The risk is massive.
You should read more.
Don’t talk down to others, especially if you fail to see beyond your preconceived notions. The iPhone is a solid business which is getting stronger every year. Apple adds valuable *new* users by the tens of millions every quarter. Apple has many successful products and they all work together to create an unbeatable ecosystem which provides real value to customers. And Apple has ample money to invest, and it does so very effectively, adding more elements to their portfolio year after year. Separately, the Mac, iTunes, the iPad and even the fledgeling Apple Watch are respectable franchises.
So, you’re unbelievably wrong. For one trick ponies, look elsewhere.
70% of revenues are from iPhone. iTunes, iWatch, iCloud, Apple pay, Apple music, Apple TV all built on iPhone. Arguably iPad and mac sales are largely because people are already locked into iPhone, iMessaging and iTunes ecosystem.
So it’s a house of cards. Virtually all sales are built on an underlying iPhone sale.
You’d be nuts to have any significant portfolio in Apple stock.
Yep Apple is ready to collapse any second now. Nothing left for them to do but knife the golden goose. Best you not quit your janitor job.
Oh you moronic frandroids say the darnedest things. Just read Warren Buffetts thoughts on when to buy and when to sell stock. Now back to your ward, Nurse Ratchet has your meds.
And Microsoft and Google are multifaceted? A patent troll and a search engine? MS can’t keep its patents forever and Google will be the next America online/yahoo as soon as Web 3.0 arrives with its internet of things. Sorry…there’s no switching out your fridge when’s there’s a memory leak or its stuck in boot loop. Which means Google will have to learn how NOT to butcher code (yeah right) or learn how monetize FAILED projects (good luck). The only tech bubble I see is with Google and people getting fed up with their half assed consumer products. But we still have the Internet of things era ahead of us, which at this rate will take at
Least a decade. So don’t sell your stock until they can’t find anything else to put a communicable computer into.
I absolutely love when Apple’s stock goes down. It is a great opportunity to buy Apple stock.
Apple, being the most liquid stock on the market, is the stock most likely to be sold when big speculators need to raise money to avoid a margin call. Volume in AAPL is insane.
I added a little to my position, but the most prudent is probably to just own the stock and ignore the antics of Wall Street. Apple itself will be doing the buying for you, with their buybacks at this attractive valuation.
There are more important things to do in life than watching stock prices.