Slash LaneApple Computer, which reports its September quarter results next Wednesday, is likely to report results at the upper end, if not exceed its guidance of $4.5 to $4.6 billion in revenue and 46 cents to 48 cents earnings-per-share, according to one Wall Street analyst.
Wu believes Apple will once again guide analysts conservatively for its December quarter, setting reasonable expectations that it can meet or exceed.
"For revenue, we believe Apple will likely guide to $5.7 - 6.1 billion (we are at the upper-end at $6.0 billion), up 25-31 percent Q/Q, fueled by continued Mac strength and a continued strong rebound in its iPod business," he wrote. "As usual, we find consensus out-quarter revenue estimates unreasonably aggressive — this time at $6.5 billion."
While Apple has made material progress in its options investigation, Wu noted that its yet-to-be disclosed non-cash charges still need to be signed off by its auditor, KPMG. "Given the recent timing, we believe there is a fair likelihood that Apple will disclose limited financials," he explained. "Should Apple give out full financials, we believe this would be viewed a positive."
In his note to investors, the analyst also predicted that there may be a "soft reset" in Apple's share price during the December quarter. However, he maintains a "Buy" rating on shares of the company and reiterates that investors should take advantage of any such weakness and "aggressively buy" Apple shares in the high $60 range.
Christine McKee
Stephen Silver
Charles Martin
William Gallagher
Malcolm Owen
12 Comments
Last quarter Wu was way off, predicting doom and gloom as usual. Apple blew his ass away.
Ah, Wu. Long time no see. 8)
Last quarter Wu was way off, predicting doom and gloom as usual. Apple blew his ass away.
Warren Buffet has said on many occasions to not buy stock in a company whose business you do not understand. Seems like common sense to me. WHY do people rely on self-styled analysts to make stock purchase decisions? Right or wrong analysts always seem to have a way out of their predictions, a C.Y.A retreat path if you will. Are they really any better than your local palm reader, astrologer, or chimpanzee throwing darts at random ? It seems most people are incapable of making their own decisions and are looking for someone to tell them what to do. Of course if something goes wrong then they have someone to blame/sue instead of themselves. "C'est le goddamn vie" as an old classmate of mine used to say.
"Soft reset"
Nice term. These guys are masters at saying nothing even when they're quoted for the public. Meaningless doublespeak jargon.
"There *may* be a soft reset." - Way to put it all on the line Mr. Analyst. Took guts to make a call like that. Your clients must feel all warm and fuzzy with that kind of confidence from their analyst.
The #1 AAPL analyst is Gene Munster. He "gets it". But the truth is that most analysts do little more than read AI and think secret.