Shares of Apple tumbled as much as 7% yesterday as investors targeted the high-flying stock in a general US market slide prompted by credit fears.
Apple shares have gained about 34% since the start of the year, largely buoyed by expectations for the company's media-playing iPhone that was unveiled in January and hit store shelves in June. In that time, the S&P 500 Index has shed about 2.6%.
"The stock's been a huge outperformer, and I think it's just [investors] taking some profits," said American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu. "It's probably one of the few names people have made a lot of money on.
"We really haven't picked up anything company-specific," he added.
Bear Stearns analyst Andrew Neff, in a generally upbeat note over Apple's prospects, cited as one concern for the company the possibility that "growth rates may have peaked and could slow, which can hurt a stock's P/E multiple".
However, Neff maintained his estimates for the company and kept an "outperform" rating on the stock.
Apple shares fell 5.2% to $113.63 in afternoon trading on the Nasdaq after falling as low as $111.62 earlier in the session.
Share