Though Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) is far from the worst-performing major company of 2024, its decline since the start of the year has certainly been alarming, given the technology giant’s status as one of the strongest firms of the last 10 years.
The tail end of April, however, finally brought a substantial respite to AAPL enthusiasts and investors as the stock made a sharp and notable rally ahead of its upcoming earnings report, igniting hopes that the downtrend might be over.
One expert – the energetic host of ‘Mad Money,’ Jim Cramer – however, believes that the daily rise shall not turn into a protracted uptrend but rather that it is the result of analyst bullisheness.
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Cramer says rally driven by poor analysis
Indeed, a handful of days before the earnings report is set to release, Apple received a string of new forecasts and new 12-month price targets, with Cramer identifying an upgrade assigned by Bernstein’s Toni Sacconaghi as the main driver for the rally.
The ‘Mad Money’ host stated he believes Sacconaghi has historically had a lackluster understanding of Apple, despite being an overall good analyst, and he does not agree that now is a good time to purchase AAPL shares.
Cramer, instead, foresees that the big tech firm is set for several weak quarters but that it will, eventually, present an actual good buying opportunity. The host also maintained that, despite the current issues, Apple remains a very strong long-term investment.
AAPL stock price chart
Whether Sacconaghi is correct and late April is the right time to buy the dip, or Cramer is right, and there is more pain ahead, the fact remains that Apple stock has been struggling so far in 2024.
Indeed, there is cause to call the Monday rally into question as it wouldn’t be the first time this year that AAPL received a substantial stock market boon from an otherwise unsubstantial statement – the previous example being the short-lived rally after the technology blue-chip started discussing artificial intelligence (AI) more.
As things stand at press time, AAPL shares are 6.54% in the red year-to-date (YTD), though the most recent rally enabled them to be 2.04% in the green on the monthly chart.
More recent trading is also substantially more positive, with the weekly chart showing a 4.94% rise and Apple stock price today standing at $173.50 after a 2.48% surge during the latest full market session.
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Disclaimer: The content on this site should not be considered investment advice. Investing is speculative. When investing, your capital is at risk.
