- Analysts at Barclays think Apple could be cutting production by 3 million units in the current quarter.
- Analysts blame lower perceived demand for the slow rollout of Apple’s AI platform.
- AAPL Shares Fall More Than 3% Tuesday, Dow Jones Also Pulls Back.
- A factory fire in India could also reduce supply during the upcoming festival season in India.
Apple Stock (AAPL) They fell more than 3% on Tuesday afternoon after a negative note from analysts at Barclays bank. Analysts estimated that Apple was reducing demand for the iPhone 16 by up to 3 million units, which would be a worrying trend so soon after the smartphone’s launch.
He Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA)which includes Apple shares, down 0.1%The NASDAQ is down 1.2% at the time of writing, while the S&P 500 is down 0.6%.
The market is also less enthusiastic on Tuesday after Iran launched a barrage of missiles at Israel following the latter’s invasion of southern Lebanon on Monday. Operators are worried that the war could spread to the entire region or directly involve the United States.
Apple Stock News
Barclays surprised the market on Tuesday with a bearish outlook for Apple under CEO Tim Cook. They reported that their conversations with suppliers were tempting them to narrow their outlook on iPhone 16 adoption.
“Based on our recent supply chain channel checks, we believe AAPL could have cut approximately 3 million units in a key semiconductor component in iPhones for the December quarter, which, if confirmed, would be the cut of production in recent history,” said Barclays analysts Tim Long and George Wang.
The iPhone 16 was released just a month ago, so this news is quite negative for next year’s earnings if true. The iPhone still accounts for almost 60% of Apple’s revenue.
Barclays analysts cite the phased rollout of the Apple Intelligence AI platform as a major barrier to early sales. Apple is expected to launch Apple Intelligence, which is based on OpenAI technology, in the US in mid-October. However, the platform is scheduled to launch in Europe and China sometime next year, which could delay initial demand.
Additionally, Apple faces a hurdle on the supply front. A fire at a Tata Electronics factory in India last weekend is cause for concern. Analysts expect Apple to be able to sell up to 1.5 million iPhone 14 and 15 units during the festival season in India in late October and early November. However, the fire in the factory could reduce the expected figure by more than 200,000 units.
Apple stock chart
Apple stock has recently encountered resistance at the $233 level. On Monday, their progress stopped there for the third time. This now seems likely to be a signal to sell in the short term. AAPL will need to try to hold at the 50-day SMA near $222 or the 100-day SMA at $214. The 200-day SMA is lower on the chart, trending near some other historical support points at $197.50.
The overall market decline on August 5 saw Apple shares fall to $196, so that price level appears to be seasonal support that could hold if a broader pullback occurs.
AAPL Stock Daily Chart
Source: Fx Street
I am Joshua Winder, a senior-level journalist and editor at World Stock Market. I specialize in covering news related to the stock market and economic trends. With more than 8 years of experience in this field, I have become an expert in financial reporting.
