Apple stock falls below $600 on profit worries

Apple stock falls below $600 on profit worries
Advertisement
Apple's stock fell below $600 Friday for the first time in three months, after the consumer electronics behemoth warned that costs of making new products will cut into profits in the holiday quarter.

Apple's earnings for the latest quarter also missed expectations.

Apple shares fell as low as $591 during the session but recovered some losses to close at $604, down $5.54.

Late Thursday, Apple said profits for the rest of the year would fall from last year because it's launching so many new products. It's expecting mammoth sales, but new products are more expensive to make than older ones.

Apple launched the iPhone 5 a month ago and announced two new iPads and three new Macs this week. In addition, it's shipping new iPods.

Wall Street analysts took the adjustment in stride, knowing that Apple nearly always lowballs its estimates, but several cut their earnings estimates for the fiscal year that started this month. Stuart Jeffrey noted that Apple's profit margins should be back to normal in the quarter that starts in April, but that will be too late to fully make up for the earnings hit in the holiday quarter. He cut his earnings estimate for the year by 10 percent and his price target on the shares from $710 to $660.

Apple shares have now lost more than $100 from their all-time peak of $705.07, hit on Sept. 21, the day the latest iPhone went on sale in the U.S. and eight other countries. That's a total loss to investors of $106 billion. Apple remains the most valuable public company in the world, by a wide margin, with a total market capitalization of $556 billion.

Apple's stock last fell below $600 following an earnings report. It missed expectations in the previous quarter, too, something rare for Apple.

The Cupertino, Calif., company started taking orders for the iPad Mini on Friday. The new, smaller version of the iPad tablet starts at $329. Initial shipments of the white model quickly sold out on Apple's site; buyers will now have to wait two weeks for delivery. The black model was still available Friday afternoon for a one-week delivery.

Comments

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.

Further reading: Apple, iPad, iPad mini, iPhone 5, Apple shares
Windows 8 inspires 'boring' computer makers to get creative
TRAI recommends Rs. 10 lakh penalty for ISPs falsifying reports
Share on Facebook Gadgets360 Twitter Share Tweet Snapchat Share Reddit Comment google-newsGoogle News
 
 

Advertisement

Follow Us

Advertisement

© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2024. All rights reserved.
Trending Products »
Latest Tech News »