Prospered in last year's economic storms, prepared for even rougher weather ahead
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"During 2011," writes Ticonderoga's Brian White in a note to clients Tuesday, "Apple was the best performer in our universe of twenty companies, rising by 26%."
Yet despite Apple's (AAPL) recent gains -- and what he expects will be "rougher" waters head -- White is again recommending the stock as his top pick for 2012. Among his reasons:
White believes that 2012 is the year Apple "will finally come to grips" with its surging cash balance ...
In 2012, we believe Apple's growing cash balance will remain a hot topic of discussion among investors, and we are projecting net cash to grow from $81.6 billion at the end of FY11 to $106.4 billion by the end of FY12 and eventually reach $142.2 billion by the end of FY13...
In light of this mounting cash balance and Tim Cook's openness to returning cash to shareholders, we expect the company to finally come to grips with its surging cash balance and issue its first cash dividend. In our view, this will not only please existing investors but also tap into a new type of investor, expanding the stock's P/E multiple in the process.
Assuming a conservative 2.5% cash dividend, this equates to $10.12 per share at the current stock price or about $9.5 billion in annual cash outflow versus the $33.3 billion in free cash flow generated by Apple in FY11.
There's a lot more to the relationship than the rumors of an Apple-branded TV suggest
Source: Jefferies
Credit AllThingsD's John Paczkowski for finding the most headline-worthy nugget in the report issued Tuesday by Jefferies analyst Peter Misek on his recent trip to Japan.
The thrust of Paczkowski's story -- Apple Television Could Be Ready for Commercial Production by Feb. 2012 -- was echoed Wednesday by more than a dozen writers who had only his brief item to MORE
Philip Elmer-DeWitt - Nov 24, 2011 8:53 AM ET
Fifteen months after the iPhone 4 was introduced, Apple unveils its successor: the iPhone 4S
Cook wraps it up. Photo: PED
Apple on Tuesday introduced a new iPhone, the iPhone 4S, and a new voice control system called Siri that it hopes will keep it ahead of its competitors by changing the way people communicate with their mobile phones.
Siri, however, is still in beta -- or not quite finished -- mode.
And MORE
Philip Elmer-DeWitt - Oct 4, 2011 11:38 AM ET
With only hours to go before the truth is known, Apple watchers are placing their bets
Source: Technologizer
I can't recall an Apple (AAPL) event surrounded by as many unanswered questions as the "Let's talk iPhone" press conference scheduled to begin today at 10 a.m. Pacific (1 p.m. Eastern).
Will there be one new iPhone or two? An iPhone 5 or 4S? Square edged or teardrop? Exclusive to Sprint (S) or available MORE
Philip Elmer-DeWitt - Oct 4, 2011 8:17 AM ET
Fortune's curated selection of newsworthy tech stories from the last 24 hours. Sign up to get the newsletter delivered to you every day.
* Sprint (S) is betting billions that the next Apple smartphone will boost its business. The number 3 mobile network in the U.S. reportedly committed to buy more than 30 million iPhones and doesn't expect to make money off the deal until 2014. (The Wall Street Journal)
* Speaking of, Apple (AAPL) finally reveals MORE
JP Mangalindan, Writer-Reporter - Oct 4, 2011 3:30 AM ET
An analyst looks at Apple as an investment opportunity today and likes what he sees
"We would rather own Apple than any other tech company in the current environment."
So writes Ticonderoga's Brian White in a note to clients issued Monday, the day before Apple's (AAPL) Oct. 4 iPhone event.
White has taken a look at the performance of Apple shares over the past two weeks and come to the same conclusion Bullish Cross' MORE
Philip Elmer-DeWitt - Oct 3, 2011 9:08 AM ET
It starts in June 2010 with the launch of the iPhone 4 and ends -- maybe -- this Tuesday
Source: AllAreaCodes
Somebody has taken the trouble to document -- with footnotes -- the rumor-filled roadmap that has brought us to Tuesday's iPhone press event at Apple (AAPL) headquarters in Cupertino, Calif. The result is the infographic published two weeks ago by a dubious website called AllAreaCodes.com (more on them in a moment).
We haven't fact-checked MORE
Philip Elmer-DeWitt - Oct 3, 2011 6:30 AM ET
In the past, shares rose on the rumor and fell on the news. Not this time.
Wondering what's going on with Apple's (AAPL) share price with a big iPhone announcement just around corner?
Andy Zaky has been tracking the trading patterns before and after Apple's special events on his Bullish Cross blog (now behind a paywall) for several years. He offers these observations (I quote):
With the exception of the iPhone 1, Apple has MORE
Philip Elmer-DeWitt - Sep 30, 2011 10:55 AM ET
Everything you wanted to know about the dimensions of Apple's secret phone in 2:39
Source: MICGadget.com
How crazy is the Chinese market for smartphone cases? Check out the video below produced by MICGadget, our favorite English-language blog covering the Chinese electronics market.
Apple (AAPL) hasn't unveiled or even named its newest iPhone, but Chinese shops are already selling cases for the iPhone 5 in a wide variety of colors and designs. They MORE
Philip Elmer-DeWitt - Sep 29, 2011 6:39 AM ET
Fortune's curated selection of newsworthy tech stories from the last 24 hours. Sign up to get the newsletter delivered to you every day.
Part of Apple's enigmatic iPhone 5 invitation.
* Official invites for the unveiling of Apple's next iPhone on October 4 went out yesterday. Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster believes the company will only release one new model -- not an additional low-end version, as some have been speculating -- along with advanced MORE
JP Mangalindan, Writer-Reporter - Sep 28, 2011 3:30 AM ETEvery morning, discover the companies, deals and trends in tech that are moving markets and making headlines. SUBSCRIBE
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| Company | Price | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank of America Corp... | 7.95 | -0.16 | -1.97% |
| Microsoft Corp | 31.27 | -0.17 | -0.54% |
| Ford Motor Co | 12.28 | -0.25 | -2.00% |
| General Electric Co | 19.39 | 0.17 | 0.88% |
| Citigroup Inc | 32.36 | -1.00 | -3.00% |
| Index | Last | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dow | 12,938.67 | -27.02 | -0.21% |
| Nasdaq | 2,933.17 | -15.40 | -0.52% |
| S&P 500 | 1,357.66 | -4.55 | -0.33% |
| Treasuries | 2.00 | -0.04 | -1.96% |
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