Shares of Apple (AAPL) fell over 4.55% on Thursday after Goldman Sachs analyst Rod Hall signaled weaknesses in the company in the near term amid the coronavirus uncertainties. However, Hall raised his price target to $299 (19% downside potential) from $263.
Hall warned investors to ‘avoid the stock’ in the near term. He believes that the absolute trading level is ‘unsustainable’ and therefore, investors should wait until the outlook of the company is clearer.
The iPhone maker is set to report its earnings next week. He expects Apple not to provide its guidance for the upcoming quarterly results, which could leave investors jittery about the next iPhone launch.
The analyst fears that the company might delay the much-awaited launch of its next iPhone amid the coronavirus concerns, which could significantly hit investors’ confidence. He stated that a one-month delay could hit revenues by 7% and earnings by 6% for the last quarter of 2020. He also expects weakness in the demand and average selling prices through the remainder of 2020.
Overall the Street has an optimistic outlook on AAPL. With 25 Buys, 6 Holds and 1 Sell, the analyst consensus rates AAPL a Strong Buy. The average target price of $369.43 is roughly at par with its closing price on July 23. (See AAPL stock analysis on TipRanks).
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