2010-10-18

Will Apple begin the next round of massive sell off?

Apple just reported its third quarter financial results, the results are more than impressive:
Apple did it again - the company crushed Street expectations for revenue and profits.[...] 
For the fiscal fourth quarter ended September 25, the company posted $20.34 billion in revenue, with profits of $4.31 billion, or $4.64 a share, ahead of the Street at $18.86 billion and $4.06 a share. The company’s own guidance had been for $18 billion in revenue and profits of $3.44 a share.

After tax profits and revenue were both records.
Gross margin was 36.9%, down from 41.8% a year ago.
The company sold 3.89 million Macs, up 27% from a year ago.
Apple sold 14.1 million iPhones, up 91%.
The company sold 9.05 million iPods, down 11%.
It sold 4.19 million iPads in the quarter.
So what's the conclusion? Apple is currently selling off after markets, down almost 7%, or $20 per share, and is back below the $300. Why? Because iPad sales disappoints.

That's what I call over-bullishness, and over optimism: Apple 4th-quarter net income soars 70 percent on strong iPhone; iPad sales fall short.

Given that Apple is the 2nd largest capitalization on the S&P500, and one of the most highly traded shares across all markets, tomorrow might be an interesting day.

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