One Month AAPL Chart from Apple Stock App
January has been an ugly month for Apple shares. Remember earlier this month when shares were flirting with $183? They closed yesterday just under $160. U-G-L-Y, but they have an alibi. Quoting a piece from 9 to 5 Mac:
The large slide in the value of AAPL stock this month has less to do with the company itself, and more to do with macroeconomic factors around the economy as a whole, and the tech sector in particular.
The US Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates in order to slow inflation, as well as ending pandemic stimulus measures. This would mean consumers have less disposable income, as well as making it more expensive for companies to borrow to fund future product development.
Stellar results are still expected when Apple reports Q1FY2022 earnings on Thursday, though that may do little to boost shares since, did I mention, macroeconomic factors dragging the shares down? 9 to 5 Mac says:
Investors will be keen to hear what [Apple] CEO Tim Cook has to say about the current quarter, but the company has declined to offer guidance of late due to the supply chain and other pandemic uncertainties, and this is unlikely to change when Apple reveals its holiday quarter earnings on Thursday.
Creative Strategies CEO and Principal Analyst Ben Bajarin posted a similar sentiment on Twitter about tech as a whole, saying:
Management commentary around earrings/guidance is going to be more impactful for investor models than this Q earnings numbers on their own.
Many investors need to hear managements confidence in 2022 in order to be confident themselves.
“Shhhh! Listen…”
Such statements may come tomorrow when Apple reports earnings for the holiday-quarter - the first quarter of fiscal year 2022. After that, it’s questions and answers with financial analysts. You can listen in live on Apple’s Investor site. The call will show up as a podcast soon after. We’ll hit highlights here on Friday.
