Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) has traded up nicely today. The stock started off the day at $90.24 and after hitting a high earlier in the session of $91.55 the stock is currently (12:30 p.m.) trading up 1.8% to $91.21.The stock is now 6.7% below its 52-week high of $97.80 that it set back on January 10th. Apple is finally going to be releasing its Apple TV units tomorrow and this leads many to believe that sooner or later the company is going to be selling high-definition movies and TV shows. The technicals on the stock at this time are bearish but improving. S&P gives the stock a very positive 5 STARS (out of 5) strong buy rating and IBD gives the stock a bullish A- 92 score.
Looking for a bullish hedged trade on the stock, I would look at the May bull-put credit spread below the $75 range. Apple hasn't traded down to $75 since October 18th and has good support around $85. This trade could prove to be a little risky if the stock is unable to meet earnings expectations when it next reports on April 25, but with over 17% downside protection this position should be fine even if we do run into an earnings surprise next month.
Let's check out a one year chart on the stock.:
DISCLOSURE: Mr. Fowlkes owns and/or controls diversified portfolios of long and short stock and option positions that include holdings in AAPL.
Michael Fowlkes has worked as a stock trader for seven years and spent the last two years working as an analyst for the online investment advisory service Investor's Observer.
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