"Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), a holding on our recommended buy list, delivered another blowout quarter, driven by booming sales of both the iPhone and its Macintosh computers," notes analyst Geoffrey Seiler.

In his BullMarket.com advisory, he suggests, "Overall, Apple's results are nothing short of amazing." Here, he provides an in-depth analysis of the quarter, his outlook, and the reasoning behind the boost to his longer-term price target to $270 a share.

"Apple sold 7.4 million iPhones in the quarter, 7% more than the year-ago quarter, and 3.05 million Macs, a 17% year-over-year increase. The end result was that the company posted a whopping 47% increase in Q4 net income.

Continue reading Apple (AAPL): 'Nothing short of amazing'

Apple (AAPL): 'Nothing short of amazing' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

You seriously have to be kidding me. Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) is interested in Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS)? I can't believe what I just read.

Well, to be accurate here, I'm not sure if this is a strong rumor or not. Then again, there has been a lot of speculation over the fate of EA since it has been doing so poorly and since its stock has seen a fall in value the last few years (it should be noted, though, that the stock has been strong the last several months).

But Barron's reports that Apple may want to buy the gaming publisher since it has a lot of cash to utilize for investing. Apparently, Guy Adami of the CNBC show Fast Money said there was some buzz equity surrounding this possibility (it was also mentioned that maybe Apple could purchase Twitter . . . but that's another story!).

Continue reading Apple and Electronic Arts? I don't buy it!

Apple and Electronic Arts? I don't buy it! originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 05 May 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This post is part of a special annual report -- Top Stock Picks '09 -- in which TheStockAdvisors.com asked 75 leading newsletter advisors to select their favorite investment for the new year.

"We believe that the most prudent way to make money in the stock market is through long-term investing in 'best of the best' companies," says growth stock specialist Nate Pile.

In his Nate's Notes newsletter, he explains, "With that in mind, we turn to one of our core portfolio holdings as out favorite investment for 2009 -- Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), whose products represent 'best in class' in just about every category in which it competes.

"We believe investors have shifted their focus entirely to the extreme near-term and are completely ignoring the long-term fundamentals that are in place for the Apple.

"To be sure, the stock has lost over 50% of its value over the past twelve months, but we believe the reasons for the decline are all short-term in nature, and we cannot help but get excited by the opportunity to once again become more aggressive about adding additional shares to our portfolio.

Continue reading Top Stock Picks '09: Apple (AAPL)

Top Stock Picks '09: Apple (AAPL) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 01 Jan 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I want to add Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) to my portfolio. I've been thinking about it for a while. I blew the opportunity of the most recent pullback. But that's in the past. So, what should I do now?

I'm a little reticent about buying Apple at these levels. Why? Is it some fundamental reason? Some overly technical reason? Well, it's more the latter than the former, but to be quite honest, it's mostly a gut feeling. I'm worried that the stock is going to flounder around throughout the dog days of summer. Yesterday's closing price of $176.84 is comfortably away from the 52-week high of $202.96, and it is well above the 52-week low of $111.62. If the stock went back to its 52-week high by the end of the year, that would represent a double-digit gain. AOL Finance gives the stock a forward P/E ratio of 31. For a company like Apple, one that has excellent growth prospects ahead of it, that isn't bad.

As many have observed, this tech company, an arch competitor of Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), is a cult stock. Not only does Apple have rabid fans eager to buy its iPod and iMac products, but it has an avid following for its shares. If Apple could just get one more big dip, I'd think seriously about buying in. As of now, I just can't bring myself to pull the trigger. Perhaps during the summer Apple will see a nice retreat from current levels, and it will be an interesting idea ahead of the Q4 holiday season. I will be keeping my eye on Apple.

Disclosure: I don't own any company mentioned here; positions can change at any time.

Thinking about Apple and its share price originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 17 Jun 2008 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple has two-thirds of the PC market for machines above $1,000 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 20 May 2008 11:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"The more I look at Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) and its new iPhone, the more I consider it to be, perhaps, the most innovative and transformative company in mobile computing today," notes wireless sector expert Nikhil Hutheesing.

The editor of The Forbes Wireless Stock Watch explains, "Put simply, iPhone is a game-changing product, and we are now making the case for investors to buy the stock."

"When Apple first announced its move into the wireless PDA business - in January 2007 when it introduced its iPhone - there was skepticism over whether it would be able to grab market share from incumbents like Research In Motion, which makes the BlackBerry smartphone and Palm which makes Treo handhelds.

"Nobody is doubting Apple today. Steve Jobs' iPhone is in the hands of over four million people and it is now the number two smartphone in the business with a 28% market share. It has surpassed Palm and is nipping at the heels of RIMM's BlackBerry.

"Until recently, iPhone, like Apple's Mac has been a fairly 'closed' universe. It was a great consumer device but it had little presence among large corporate users, the so-called enterprise market. That all changed in March.

Continue reading Apple (AAPL): A 'game-changer'

Apple (AAPL): A 'game-changer' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 11 Apr 2008 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Best Buy plans to ramp up Apple presence in 2008 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 15 Jan 2008 13:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading iPod, iPhone raising Apple's share of PC market

iPod, iPhone raising Apple's share of PC market originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 14 Dec 2007 16:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Dell to offer new tablet and all-in-one PCs soon originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 16 Nov 2007 16:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple's (AAPL) iPhone and Mac sales estimates are right on the mark originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 05 Sep 2007 14:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The stock market has demonstrated its power to scare investors with volatility. These past six weeks have created an environment of fear, uncertainty and doubt, otherwise known as FUD. Historically, markets never go straight up or straight down as pessimism is balanced by optimism in these short-term battles. But throughout all of this FUD, the better-run companies seem to rise to the top, as is the case with Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL).

Apple's stock is sitting at $138, having seen a recent 52-week high of nearly $149. At the worst of this trough a few weeks back, the stock did hit $118 when investor nervousness was at its highest. Also, professional portfolio managers were unloading their winning trades in order to protect some semblance of 2007 performance. With that apparently behind us, the return to quality is certainly emerging. Apple is in this camp and one of its leaders.

Apple's quarter and fiscal-year end is September 30, so the company is now in its final 30 days of the year. The numbers I expect from Apple for the September quarter are revenues of $5.95 billion and earnings per share of 82 cents. If recent history repeats itself, Apple will more than likely exceed those expectations. The wind is clearly at its back.

Continue reading Apple (AAPL): The cream continues to rise

Apple (AAPL): The cream continues to rise originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 03 Sep 2007 09:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) has released the latest version of the Mac, the iMac. And, it has added software that may allow it to compete with Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) Windows, the standard OS for PCs.

The new software on the iMac could take the place of some Windows functions. According to (subscription required)The Wall Street Journal, Macs will be loaded with a new product called Numbers that can perform the same functions as Windows Excel.

Apple's share of the US computer market has grown to 5%.

If Apple thinks it will get much more of the market, it is kidding itself. Unlike the iPod market, where it had very little direct competition from another large company, the PC competition is lead by Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ), and Dell (NASDAQ: DELL), and each of these companies has a huge stake in defending its share.

Beyond that, Apple's software may recreate some of the functions of Windows software, but it does not have the huge array of functions built into Vista. And, computer users have become used to these features by using Windows over a number of years. Switching them, at both the consumer and enterprise level will be difficult.

Finally, Windows-based PCs can communicate with one another easily because of the common OS. Apple would have to break that cycle by getting users to buy a product that is not compatible with Windows.

It won't happen.

Douglas A. McIntyre is a partner at 24/7 Wall St.

Apple goes after Windows users originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 08 Aug 2007 07:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• New iMacs -- there is speculation that there will be new 20" and 24" models, and that the 17" model will be discontinued.
• iLife '08, iWork '08 -- there is also talk that Jobs will demonstrate these two long-awaited software programs.
• New slim keyboards -- we will also likely see if the new slimmer iMac keyboard is a reality or a fraud.

What iPhone? Jobs to hold Mac Conference next week originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 01 Aug 2007 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Dell tries eye-candy: New colors for its computers originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 26 Jun 2007 14:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

While many advisors and investors focus on the iPod and the iPhone when assessing the outlook for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), Nate Pile has a different take.

The editor of Nate's Notes explains, "As often happens following the release of widely anticipated news, Apple has drifted lower over the past few week -- and it would not surprise me at all to see this downtrend continue for another several weeks while analysts and investors alike fret over 'slowing iPod sales' and debate over the merits and the potential of the iPhone."

And while he expects that the iPod and iPhone will remain in the spotlight for the next several quarters, he adds, "These products are not our primary reason for being in the stock. That honor goes to the company's iMac line."

Indeed, based on the expanding markets for the PC/digital world, he believes we will see an "unexpected surge" in iMac sales.

Continue reading Apple: Is Wall Street underestimating iMac?

Apple: Is Wall Street underestimating iMac? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 07 Feb 2007 09:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

One of Google's missions is to bring the world's information to everyone possible using any method possible. With that said, it's good to see that much of what Google produces in terms of product can be accessed by customers using either the Windows operating system or the Apple Mac operating system. Is this a coincidence? Hardly.

Most of what Google produces is platform-agnostic, and that's by design, of course. The platform used by Google is the web browser -- the operating system is an afterthought in a manner of speaking. Yes, there are Google applications like Google Earth and Google Picasa that are actually installed programs -- not web-based ones.

But still, most of the great stuff Google produces just needs a standards-compliant web browser (that's an oxymoron). If you use Windows XP, MacOS X, Linux, Unix, FreeBSD, you name it -- most of the Google universe is available to you with an Internet connection and a web browser.

The point made in the source article is that soon, many questions about "software" won't be mentioned as in "for Windows or Mac." Soon, it may take on the phrasing of "Windows, Mac or Google." That's an odd thought, but true. Just like the Internet itself, Google has designed and is designing everything to be universally open and accessible from almost every possible angle.

As a GOOG investor, this is a key thing to keep in mind -- the barriers to entry are almost non-existent and the product release schedule is not dictated by any third party. Google may just be the next operating "system".

Is Google the next operating system? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 18 Jul 2006 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

After one week Apple stops sale of $899 iMac originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 13 Jul 2006 13:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Meet the new eMac originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 05 Jul 2006 13:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple after the bell 06/30/06: new intel chips, more Foxconn attention originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 30 Jun 2006 16:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.