One of the most lucrative investments of the past decade has been Apple stock (NASDAQ: AAPL). The company’s portfolio includes some of the most innovative tech products, including the iPhone, iPad, Mac Book, and Apple Watch. The company has sold its products to hundreds of millions of users and has become the most valuable company in the world. Apple became the first company in the world as its market capitalization hit $3 trillion in July 2023-exceeding the UK’s GDP at some point. However, that valuation has declined to $2.86 trillion as of this writing.
However, AAPL stock ran into headwinds in 2024, with the stock hitting a six-month low of $164 on April 19. The stock lost 12% of its value between January and April 2024, with March losses being the largest, at 5.1%. The AAPL stock decline was, however, snapped on April 22, 10 days after the release of the company’s quarterly earnings. Also, the stock rose by more than 8% in the first 24 hours of its first quarter 2024 earnings release.
Apple generated revenues of $90.8 billion, beating the forecast figure $90 billion. Despite this, however, sales declined by 4% compared to the first quarter of 2023, while iPhone sales came in at $45.96 billion, slightly missing the forecast $46 billion. Nonetheless, the company’s earnings per share stood at $1.53, exceeding the consensus figure of $1.50. One of Apple’s existential challenges is in the AI front where it trails key competitors.
What is apple stock?
Apple is the biggest corporate company in terms of market cap. Its stock is listed on NASDAQ stock exchange in the United States. The ticker symbol of Apple stock is AAPL. The current price of AAPL is $184.97, which is around the same level it opened the year on January 2.
Apple Latest news
The biggest news besides the forecast-beatings earnings is Apple’s announcement that it would buy back $110 billion worth of stock. This historic buyback underlines the company’s strong financial muscle, and will certainly boost the stock price in the coming weeks.
One of the concerns bubbling under the AAPL stock price is the decline in sales in China. Apple’s sales in Greater China declined from $17.8 billion to $16.4 billion in the first quarter of 2024, underlining this reality. However, the performance exceeded analysts’ expectations, which had forecast sales of $15.3 billion.
In other news, CEO Tim Cook, COO Jeff Williams, CFO Luca Maestri, senior vice-president of retail Deirdre O’Brien and General counsel Katherine Adams sold $70 million worth of their APPL stock holdings in April.
Apple chart
The following NASDAQ: AAPL weekly chart shows that the stock had almost a 30% pullback in 2022. The stock hit its bottom on the first trading session of 2023 and has been in an unstoppable uptrend since then. In June 2023, the Apple share price surged to a new all-time high. Therefore, despite the current storm, the stock has proven its ability to make strong recoveries and erase losses.
Apple stock forecast today
The momentum on AAPL stock price signals that the buyers are in control. Furthermore, the upside will likely continue to prevail if they keep the price above the 183.30 pivot mark. That could enable them to head to the resistance at 187.71. A continuation of bullish control at that point will likely break the resistance and potentially move the stock to test 190.56. Conversely, a move below 183.30 will favour the sellers to breach the support at 180.00, which would invalidate the upside narrative. Also, such a move could enable them to build momentum to test 175.34 in extension.
Apple Stock Forecast 2024
In 2023, Apple shares appreciated steadily, with little resistance. However, 2024 is turning out to be the year of AI. Therefore, Apple has to “AI or burst”-and that means that it will likely spend significant sums of money in AI research and development to ensure it does not fall further back. If ther’s one thing technology has taught us, its the fact that it waits for no one. Nokia learnt the hard way, and Apple will be careful not to feel “too big to fail”. Furthermore, high-interest rates and increasing regulatory scrutiny could create a harsh business environment.
Also, iPhone sales declined to $46 billion from Q1 2023’s $51.3 billion, aligning with Apple’s narration at the beginning of the year. Also, the company did not come clean on its AI strategy, leaving room for speculation on its ability to take on rivals like Amazon, Microsoft and NVIDIA. That could limit the upside for Apple. That said, the $110 billion buyback is substantial by all standards, and could create momentum to propel the stock to new all-time highs.
Apple needs to stay above $176.0 level to sustain momentum for the upside. Short-term resistance is likely to come at the 190.56 level, but a breach above this level could provide the bulls with greater propulsion. Furthermore, extended control by the buyers at that level could push the stock to test new all-time highs at $200.33.
Apple stock forecast 2025
Notable sites like Walletinvestor are putting Apple stock price at around $135. Considering the current state of the global economy, I also expect a sideways price action by AAPL for the next couple of years.
I’ll keep updating my AAPL price forecast in my free Telegram group, which you’re welcome to join.
Apple stock forecast 2030
If Apple keeps delivering the most innovative products, then its stock price should see an organic increase till 2030. This is if the demand for flagship Apple products also increases considerably in the next few years. If the Fed starts to decrease interest rates in 2024, then Apple can reach a new all-time high by 2025. By 2030, the Apple share price prediction can be as high as $600.
Apple stock forecast 2040
Stock price of any company 10 years from now is anybody’s guess. Nevertheless, we can still use the price history to take a shot at Apple stock forecast 2040. Considering the exponential run of Apple price in the past decade, $1000 per share seems to be a quite conservative price target.
Is Apple a good investment?
Apple had a scintillating run in 2023, setting a record high stock price in December. However, 2024 has turned out to be a different ball game, with AI grabbing the headlines. Apple’s Vision Pro VR headset has not captivated the market as imagined, not less because of its steep price tag. Also, the AI revolution has gathered far much greater pace than the metaverse dream, and Apple might have to restrategise.
Having said that, if there’s one company that has proven its ability to innovate and come up with captivating, cutting-edge product, its Apple. The company may have fallen behind in AI, but you can bet that it will conjure up something that will almost certainly capture the world’s attention.
How to buy Apple stock?
As mentioned earlier, Apple stock is listed on US Exchange Nasdaq, which is the second largest stock exchange in the world. Apart from Nasdaq, you can also invest in AAPL by online retail brokers like Exness, eToro, Robinhood, Fidelity, etc. Personally, I trade on Exness where the signup is free from any hassle.
Should I buy Apple stock?
Investing in equities is one of the riskiest financial practices. Therefore one must assess their own risk appetite before investing in stocks. Nevertheless, considering the past returns of the US equities and tech stocks, it seems quite logical to maintain some Apple exposure in your long-term portfolio.
When did Apple stock split?
A stock split is simply an increase in the number of shares of a company while its market cap remains the same. As the name suggests, each share splits into multiple depending on the splitting factor. The last Apple stock split occurred in 2020. The reasons of this action include managing stock-based compensation for Apple employees and share repurchase programs.
How many times has apple stock split?
In all of its price history, Apple stock has split a total of 5 times. These splits occurred on June 16 1987, June 21 2000, February 28, 2005, June 9 2014 and August 28, 2020. It has been observed that investor interest in stock increased every time after the announcement of a stock split.
Why is apple stock so cheap?
When compared to the price of many Fortune 500 stocks, Apple stock price appears to be low. It must be noted here that the number of outstanding shares of every company is different. Therefore a market cap of a company is a better depiction of its worth than its stock price.