AAPL: How high will it go?

[coldstart]

Just to gloat a little, RIM stock is up over 50% since I made my post below in August 2012. It is up another 16.5% today on the Toronto Stock Exchange (I own RIM.TO which is priced in Canadian Pesos). I am up over 40% on the stock overall as I sold most of it on the way up.

My other main stock is Nokia (NOK). I am up over 25% on that too in the past few months.

Buy low, sell high.

My next stock is Best Buy (BBY) currently at 11.57. They had a bad quarter with bad earnings and the stock has dropped to the lowest price since 1998. The market did not factor in Hurricane Sandy and the fact that 15-20% of BB stores were closed. Not to mention that the founder and previous CEO offered $24/share for the company three months ago which was turned down by the board of directors.

I expect both of: (1) much better earnings next quarter; and (2) the potential buyout at $17-20 before the end of February 2013.

Originally Posted by coldstart

Apple is a great company that has a lot of hype.

That said, its share price is unlikely to double or significantly increase much more. How many people can buy the same one phone and the same one tablet. Doesn't anyone want to be unique?

Personally, I like beaten down stocks that have the ability to double, triple or even quadruple. In the tech sector, RIM (ticker: RIMM) the maker of Blackberry phones is down almost 95% from its peak. It has six new phones, a new operating system (BB10) and a new set of enterprise servers all coming out around January 2013. For under $7 per share, it is a steal with a market cap of around $4 billion.

RIM has:
(1) NO debt;
(2) has $2.2 billion in cash reserves!
(3) owns $2.5 billion in patents;
(4) 78 million BB users;
(5) owns its buildings/real estate; and
(6) a great enterprise server business.

Plus the stock market guru, the Warren Buffet of Canada, just bought a huge chunk of the company (10%, averaging down). I think it is a better buy than Apple even though the media is harsh on anything RIM.

It may just be that I am Canadian and everyone here is a Crackberry addict.....

[Reg]

I got in a few months ago and have been wavering on buying more as it climbs. Finally did, early this morning, just before another spike!

Coldstart - What do you think RIM will be at in 6mos and where do you think AAPL will be?

[coldstart]

I have absolutely no idea where RIM will be in six months. All I know is that I won't be holding a lot of their stock as BB10 failure is a significant probability. It also could be a huge success and the stock could hit $25/share but I'm not a believer.

I think Apple is the new RIM of 2009-- recycling old software and ideas and generally not keeping up with the competition. What was the biggest advance for Apple this year:

1. Shrinking the iPad to 2/3 size and calling it a cutesy Mini Pad; or

2. Adding 1/2" to the screen of the iPhone and adding LTE; or

3. Allowing fewer people into the Apple store at a time to increase the size of the line outside.

Apple hasn't 'innovated' anything new in the past few years and have become a company of marketers. I also don't like the lighter iPhone as it feels cheap, delicate and insignficant. There is nothing new due out of Apple for almost a full year and they are falling behind the competition.

I think that Samsung has crushed Apple in the hardware department. The new S3 and Note 2 are amazing phones with every advantage out there. They are cheaper and better. The only problem with Android phones is software security as they can be prone to malware and Google likes to harvest your information. I am in a information-sensitive industry otherwise I would buy one.

I think the currentl Apple iPhone and iPads are going to age quickly and poorly. The public should figure this out at some point and sales could be reduced significantly. For example, in Toronto several retailers (Starbucks, etc.) are now accepting NFC payments from smart phones that have the technology (Android and Blackberry). Why does the phone that costs twice as much not have that useful feature? As an iPhone user, it is sad that the Android user behind me in line at a coffee shop can place his order and pay for it before me without even getting to the counter.

Disclosure: I own an iPhone 4, a BB Playbook, an HP computer, a MacBook Pro, NOK stock, RIM stock and BBY stock. I regularly also use an iPad3 and a S2 phone.

[imcarthur]

Best Buy? I guess I am too close to the fickleness of the CE market to ever consider investing in a national retailer. Too many have already hit me in my wallet - on both sides of the border. The scuttlebutt says their Magnolias are struggling - except for the Design Center locations.

Related: Globe Investor: RIM rally: Maybe Apple is playing a role here

Ian

[onewhippedpuppy]

Am I the only one that really doesn't like the idea of paying via NFC? A phone containing credit card information seems to be just screaming to be hacked or otherwise compromised. What happens if you lose your phone?

[enzo1]

Enterprises buying iPhones 'in droves': Here's the tipping point | ZDNet

[enzo1]

UPDATE 3-Ericsson sues Samsung for patent infringement | Reuters

[enzo1]

New Imacs go on sale Friday and will begin shipping sometime in December...

[enzo1]

Apple Regains U.S. Smartphone Lead With iPhone 5 - Tech Trader Daily - Barrons.com

[imcarthur]

"Apple Inc's latest iPhone has received final clearance from Chinese regulators, paving the way for a December debut in a highly competitive market where the lack of a new model had severely eroded its share of product sales. China is Apple's second-largest market and its Chinese fans are eagerly awaiting the latest model of its smartphone, the iPhone 5, which was released in the United States in September." Reuters

Ian

[widgeon13]

This should be a big qtr.

[techweenie]

Interesting to hear the new CEO of Yahoo say they are dumping Blackberrys in favor of "smartphones." She's been saying some weird stuff lately, but that riled up the RIM crowd.

[McLovin]

It had gone up, but it's taking a big hit again today, and is back under $550 today.

Some thoughts on AAPL

AAPL: Death Cross? March Disappointment? Piper Rebuts Stock Drop - Tech Trader Daily - Barrons.com

[McLovin]

I don't know if I should buy some more at less than $550 or just sit it out.

[widgeon13]

So what is the general consensus after the last week of gyrations? Lots of negative thoughts from the analysts and what the hell would Apple do in TV's that would be really NEW?

[imcarthur]

Take your pick of reasons: Fiscal cliff jitters. Year-end tax avoidance selling. Cracks in the post-Jobs Apple wall. Profit taking by the big traders.

Best to wait it out at this point & hope for a rosier 2013. At least MCD is crawling back.

Ian

[red-beard]

Ian - I think most people are "resetting" the value, taking the profit before the taxes go up. I know I did.

[imcarthur]

Agreed for US investors but in the ROW . . . thankfully, I only own a pittance.

Ian

[McLovin]

I think I'll buy another 20 shares tomorrow, based on afterhours trading today it looks like it will be a little under $530.

That'll drive down my average cost to $540 on 40 shares.

[biosurfer1]

McLovin...what kind of holding time frame are you looking at?