Apple Inc. (AAPL) Shares Trading Below $100

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The shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) are trading below $100 today, the first time since October 2014. The stock price of the tech giant is down more than 2% to $97.90 per share at the time of this writing around 1:10 in the afternoon in New York.

Apple lost more than 10% in stock value over the past three months. Most of the losses were caused by investors’ concern in recent weeks regarding the tech giant’s future. Investors are worried about the slowing demand for its iPhones and economic turmoil in China, the largest market for Apple’s iPhones.

Apple cuts iPhone 6S production

The Nikkei Asian Review recently reported that Apple reduced the production of its iPhone 6S and iPhone 6s Plus for the first quarter of 2016.

Analysts suggested that the tech giant is experiencing a slower pace of the sales of its smartphones because consumers see small improvements in the performance of the latest iPhones.

Additionally, the stronger dollar is also affecting the company’s sales in many emerging markets because it leads to price increases.

Meanwhile, China suffered another stock market rout today, which prompted Chinese regulators to suspend its circuit-breaker system. Yesterday, the People’s Bank if China reduced its yuan reference rate, which boosted concerns regarding the countries slowing economic growth.

Apple price target reduced by RBC Capital

RBC Capital recently reduced its price target on the shares of Apple to $130 from $140 a piece. In a note to investors, RBC Capital analyst Amit Daryani said the tech giant has a higher than required inventory level of iPhones worldwide. He also trimmed his iPhone sales estimate from 54 million to 45 million units for the March quarter.

He reiterated his Outperform rating on Apple shares because of his belief that the iPhone will remain attractive a little longer and expected a turnaround in the next quarter.

On the other hand, UBS analyst Steven Milunovich maintained a Buy rating on Apple with a price target of $130 per share. The analyst lowered his FY16 sales estimate for the iPhone by 5% to 220 million units. He also cut his FY16 and FY17 earnings estimate to $9.46 per share and $10.85 per share, respectively.

Milunovich explained that the demand for the iPhones was declining probably because of smaller upgrades rather than few new users. He also mentioned the results of the previous UBS global survey indicating that consumers have less interest in the iPhone 6s and the upgrade cycles in most countries are becoming longer.

According to him, the iPhone maker was not losing market share despite the production cut. He also stated that the company’s brand and ecosystem “have never looked stronger.”

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