Appaloosa unloads all Apple shares as other hedge funds trim position
Another big investment fund is breaking up with Apple. According to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing, David Tepper's Appaloosa Management has reduced its position in the iPhone maker to zero, mirroring a recent move by high-profile investor Carl Icahn.
Appaloosa dumped more than 1.26 million shares of Apple common stock worth about $133 million at the end of 2015, SEC documents show. BusinessInsider spotted the selloff earlier today.
Tepper isn't the only investment manager who shored up assets on the heels of Apple's first year-over-year revenue decline in more than a decade. Bridgewater Associates, which last cycle raised its stake in Apple, sold off 221,452 shares to end March with 106,000 shares worth $11.6 million.
Two weeks ago, Icahn announced that he no longer owns Apple shares, citing Chinese market risks. In particular, the investor is concerned that the country's economy and strict government policies might make things difficult for Apple, which is looking at China as a major growth opportunity.
Despite Wall Street doom and gloom, massive funds like BlackRock, whose co-founder and current COO Susan Wagner serves on Apple's board, and Vanguard upped their holdings in the company over the course of the most recent quarter. Hedge fund manager David Einhorn also voiced support, saying he sees 'tremendous value' in Apple stock. Einhorn's Greenlight Capital still holds a position in Apple, but the exact amount is unknown as the fund has yet to file a holdings report for the March quarter.
Last month, Apple posted its first quarterly revenue decline in 13 years on disappointing iPhone sales. Of note, revenue generated by Greater China slumped to roughly $12.5 billion in the three-month period ending in March, down 26 percent year-over-year.
Appaloosa dumped more than 1.26 million shares of Apple common stock worth about $133 million at the end of 2015, SEC documents show. BusinessInsider spotted the selloff earlier today.
Tepper isn't the only investment manager who shored up assets on the heels of Apple's first year-over-year revenue decline in more than a decade. Bridgewater Associates, which last cycle raised its stake in Apple, sold off 221,452 shares to end March with 106,000 shares worth $11.6 million.
Two weeks ago, Icahn announced that he no longer owns Apple shares, citing Chinese market risks. In particular, the investor is concerned that the country's economy and strict government policies might make things difficult for Apple, which is looking at China as a major growth opportunity.
Despite Wall Street doom and gloom, massive funds like BlackRock, whose co-founder and current COO Susan Wagner serves on Apple's board, and Vanguard upped their holdings in the company over the course of the most recent quarter. Hedge fund manager David Einhorn also voiced support, saying he sees 'tremendous value' in Apple stock. Einhorn's Greenlight Capital still holds a position in Apple, but the exact amount is unknown as the fund has yet to file a holdings report for the March quarter.
Last month, Apple posted its first quarterly revenue decline in 13 years on disappointing iPhone sales. Of note, revenue generated by Greater China slumped to roughly $12.5 billion in the three-month period ending in March, down 26 percent year-over-year.
Comments
"Where's sog??" "Where's sog??"
There hasn't been, and probably won't be, a buy-and-hold opportunity like this in a while. If my portfolio weren't already overweighted with AAPL, I'd be loading up. Giving me a 2.5% dividend yield while holding (80 basis points better than the yield on a 10-year US government bond).
Sell low...
a) stock value is reflecting not so much company health but mainly growth potential. And currently, Apple makes most profit from selling iPhones which is reaching a steady state. On the past, adding regions and carriers has been a big growth driver. This is close to gone. again, nothing to worry from a company wealth perspective as it will have a steady rate of switchers and upgraders.
b) some funds are into the short run, not the long haul. And Apple has a strong growth potential IMO in two areas: services and new hardware categories, both of which require some time to mature to a point where they can replace previous growth by iPhone hardware sales.
The he only thing I found concerning recently is Tim Cook's somewhat inconsistent narrative in earning calls. Listen eg torte last episode of Gruber's The Talkshow for details. But again, not at all concerning company health or long term growth potential.
If that were to happen they will make money from the whiners who waited too long to sell and capitulate at the bottom. The smart guys are the ones who sell when pivot points are breached because their experience tells them there is more risk than reward at those points the whiners probably know very little about how to trade like these "smart" guys and vent their frustration in the wrong direction.
Such is the MO of losers/victims - all they do is whine about everything as they get wiped out.
Making money is about having no emotion in what one is trading. There is no such thing as loyalty if you want to make money on stocks in the short to medium term, otherwise you will get slaughtered.
So if the stock goes to 80 and that fund manager buys in again there and it trades back up to 90 where they sell and make a 10% profit, you are the one who will look stupid, won't you?
Until we see what happens over the summer no one really knows . Its way to early to make judgments.
/rolleyes
And, no one called anyone 'rats.' Don't make up stupid, random stuff.
They didn't miss it though, did they?
They predicted the slowdown in the last quarter statement and they were pretty much bang on the money. Was I concerned about the slowdown? Nope, because for anyone watching, this is how Apple has run its business for the past fifteen years: hit a market, bleed it dry, move on to the next market. They are the Independence Day aliens of the tech world.
We'll see a few peaks and dips in iPhone sales over the coming years, but Apple is now preparing to move on.
No one gets every trade correct, that's impossible. It's only amateurs who think they can get it right all the time. All one can really do is recognize the risk/reward, set stops, minimize the downside and move to the next trade. The difference between the whiners (amateurs) is they look at the upside potential FIRST. This is called greed. The Professional looks at the downside FIRST! and keep emotion out of it. Currently aapl's downside is a lot more than the upside.
Spot on.
Amateurs get emotionally involved in their investments, which makes it casino gambling, not investing.
No predicted YOY slowdown because of the aberration that the 2015 iPhone created (larger form). Over a 2 or 3 yr comparison iPhone shipments increased. Not saying a slowdown may not occur in future Qtr's.