Shares of Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) are up 0.4% to trade at $227.75 at last check, cutting into the losses of its previous two days. The stock slipped following Monday's event, where Apple unveiled its new "iPhone Air" lineup alongside updates to its Watch and AirPods products. While the announcements drew attention, some investors were underwhelmed, citing concerns over the company's limited focus on AI integration as competitors like Microsoft (MFST) gain ground.
If today's momentum holds, the stock could snap a four-day losing streak and trim its 8.7% year-to-date deficit. The security has a ways to go before catching up to its Dec. 26, record high of $260.10, as it leans on support from the $226 level and its 40-day moving average to offset recent weakness.
In the past few days, the equity has drawn mixed reactions from analysts. At least four firms, including BofA Global Research, raised their price targets, while this morning D.A. Davidson downgraded shares from "buy" to "neutral." Coming into today, 21 firms of the 28 covering the stock called it a "buy" or better, while the 12-month consensus target price of $242.22 is a 5.8% premium to current levels.
Also worth noting is that on the International Securities (ISE), Cboe Options (CBOE) and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the equity's 50-day and 10-day call/put ratios rank in the 98th and 92nd percentiles of readings from the past year, respectively. In other words, options traders have been much more bullish than usual.
