Apple (AAPL) 04 (Mar 01 - Aug 18)

[winston]

not vested

Should I Buy Apple Inc. (AAPL) Stock? 3 Pros, 3 Cons

Can AAPL stock succeed as iPhone biz matures?

By Jeff Reeves

Source: InvestorPlace.com

http://investorplace.com/2017/01/buy-ap ... Hckkvl96M8

[winston]

How to Play Apple This Quarter

by TOM GENTILE

AAPL has made higher lows and higher highs.

There’s two reasons why I see the stock climbing even higher from here:

1) The iPhone 8: Apple is anticipating the release of multiple iPhone models that will include new features, such as flexible OLED, a slightly larger screen size, and wireless charging. And the fact that details about the iPhone 8 have been leaked only propels the stock higher.

2) Trump Tax Reform: President Trump promises to lower coporate taxes and taxes on the cash reserves companie, which could provide a significant, positive impact on AAPL’s earnings.

Source: Power Profit Trades

http://powerprofittrades.com/2017/01/pl ... 2#deeplink

[winston]

not vested

Apple regains its No 1 position in smartphone sales

Apple Inc reclaimed the throne as the world's top smartphone seller for the first time in five years, beating rival Samsung in units shipped for the holiday quarter and boosting revenues with a strong showing for its new, top-of-the-line iPhone 7 Plus.

The iPhone sales numbers, and a profit of almost US$18 billion (HK$140.4 billion), both handily beat Wall Street expectations, sending its shares up 3 percent.

But the gains were tempered by Apple's cautious outlook for the current quarter, which it mainly attributed to the strong US dollar, which hurts companies like Apple that sell a majority of their products overseas, by forcing them to raise prices, which depresses unit sales, or sacrifice margins.

Apple sold 78.29 million iPhones in the fiscal first quarter ended December 31, up from 74.78 million the year before. Analysts on average had expected 77.42 million, according to research firm FactSet StreetAccount.

That beat Samsung Electronics' 77.5 million smartphone sales in the quarter, said tech data firm Strategy Analytics, the first time that has happened since the fourth quarter of 2011.

The results, reflecting the first full quarter of iPhone 7 sales, come as global demand for smartphones slows down and as cheaper Android alternatives flood the market. Apple may also have gained from Samsung's recall of the its fire-prone Galaxy Note 7.

Apple is heavily dependent on the success of the iPhone, which accounts for more than two-thirds of its total revenue.

Source; REUTERS

[winston]

Berkshire Hathaway has made around $358 million on Apple

by Julia La Roche

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B) has made around $358.6 million (on paper) on its large investment in Apple (AAPL).

On Tuesday evening, Apple smashed Wall Street analysts’ earning expectations and surpassed estimates for iPhone sales. The tech giant’s stock was last trading up around 5.3%, up $6.43, at $127.78 per share.

Assuming Berkshire hasn’t bought or sold shares in the past four months, its position in Apple—which is over 15.22 million shares—is currently valued at $1.94 billion.

Berkshire Hathaway, which has historically avoided investing in technology companies, snapped up a large position in Apple stock last year.

Berkshire Hathaway began building the position during the first quarter of 2016, buying just over 9.8 million shares, a regulatory filing posted last May showed. The average purchase price is unclear.

During the second quarter, Berkshire Hathaway increased its position by 55%, adding more than 5.4 million more shares. The position was unchanged during the third quarter. Data for the fourth quarter is not yet available.

Back in November, Buffett was asked at an event for undergraduate and graduate students in Omaha why he doesn’t invest in technology companies.

The “Oracle of Omaha” hinted that his investment deputies— Ted Weschler and Todd Combs— are responsible for buying Apple, according to notes posted by Dr. David Kass, a professor of finance at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business:

“Ted (Weschler) and Todd (Combs) each have about $9 billion to invest. One or more invested in Apple. With Apple, people get hooked on things that they like. [Buffett] has a competitive edge within his circle of competence (which does not include tech companies).

His circle grows wider over time but outside of his circle tech people know better than he does. [Buffett] mentioned that he did not invest in Microsoft even though it had no cost of goods sold and was earning a ‘royalty on the world’ since the world needed its operating system.”

Buffett said in an interview with Charlie Rose that aired on Friday that he bought $12 billion worth of stock since Donald J. Trump won the election. He didn’t name the stocks. Regulatory filings for the fourth quarter are expected to come out in mid-February.

Source: Yahoo Finance

[winston]

not vested

The stock still trades at 15x earnings. Much cheaper than the market. Apple trades at 13x next year’s projected earnings. The S&P 500 trades at 16.5x.

What about Apple's monster cash position? Apple has even more cash now--a record $246 billion. If we excluded the cash from the valuation, Apple’s market cap goes down from $675 billion to $429 billion. That would equate to Apple trading at closer to 9x earnings.

Add to that, Apple now has a fresh catalyst coming in, Trump policies. The new President Trump is incentivizing Apple (and others) to bring offshore cash hoards back home with a flat 10% tax. And Apple makes money--a lot of it.

A cut in the corporate tax rate will be a boon for earnings. Two years ago, Carl Icahn argued that Apple should use (a lot more of) their cash to buyback shares--and, with that, valued the stock at double its current levels.

Source: Forbes

[winston]

not vested

Apple Inc- Record high revenue, is it enough?

Recommendation: Neutral (Downgrade), Last done price: USD 128.75
Target price: USD 129.58, Analyst: Ho Kang Wei

· Revenue grew 3% yoy to a record high US$78.3bn
· Forex headwinds weaken guidance for next quarter
· Positive and Negative risks with Trump administration
· Downgrade to “Neutral” from “Accumulate” rating and higher TP of US$129.58 (previously US$125.81)

Source: Phillips

http://internetfileserver.phillip.com.s ... 170202.pdf

[winston]

Apple: Analyst Questions China Revenue

By Shuli Ren

The smartphone maker claimed during its earnings call on Wednesday that “total Greater China segment revenue was down 12%, but revenue from Mainland China was even with the all-time record results from a year ago and grew in constant currency terms”.

We have talked to AAPL wholesaler groups in China post earning call. There are are only 5 majors and all are SOEs.

Double digits decline in retail sale mainland China in Dec Q is cross checked and double confirmed.

Given iPhone is ~70% of AAPL total revenue, we can’t reconcile the difference between the continuing double digits decline in iphone sales and flat mainland China revenue.

Wholesalers also told us that in Jan, AAPL launched a promotional program: 20- 30 USD rebate to wholesalers per activation. This also does not bode well with the upbeat tone on China yesterday.

According to Bloomberg, Tim Cook has been dumping Apple shares since mid of Jan 2017 and the last batch was -20,000 shares on Feb 1, just ahead of the earnings.

Tonight, both Cirrus Logic (75-80% revenue from AAPL) and Qorvo (35% from AAPL) reported and disappointed. QRVO March Q guidance is 12% below the Street and EPS guidance is 23% below the Street. CRUS Q4 Revenue guidance midpoint missed expectation by 4%.

Source: Barron's Asia

http://blogs.barrons.com/asiastocks/201 ... ue-claims/

[winston]

not vested

How the “Era of Apple” Can Come Roaring Back

by Keith Fitz-Gerald

Source: Total Wealth Research

http://totalwealthresearch.com/2017/02/ ... ring-back/

[winston]

Here’s How Apple Inc. (AAPL) Stock Can Hit $200

The iPhone is just another passenger as Apple stock rockets higher

By Will Ashworth

Source: Investor Place

http://investorplace.com/2017/02/how-ap ... JlWlfl96M8

[winston]

This Is Already the Best Value Stock on the Market – and Just Wait Until Trump Cuts Taxes

By SHAH GILANI

Apple now sports a market cap of $675 billion, but it trades at less than 16 times earnings.

That's way below the S&P 500's PE ratio above 22, or 26 on a forward basis.

Incredibly, it gets even cheaper when you factor out the company's legendary $246 billion cash and equivalents pile.

Subtract $246 billion from the company's market cap of $675 billion, and, on that basis, you get a market cap against earnings of $429 billion.

That's a PE of 9.

The company's effective tax rate as of 2016 was 26.1%. This shows that, after expenses, deductions, and credits, Apple's not paying the top rate anyway. Still, a reduction down to 15% would be a huge boon to the bottom line.

Source: Money Morning

https://moneymorning.com/2017/02/07/thi ... uts-taxes/