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Apple Estimates Unmoved by Product Announcements

Earnings

By John Butters  |  September 9, 2016

Apple unveiled several new products and services at the company’s event on September 3, including iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, and the Apple Watch Series 2. Given these announcements, did analysts revise their outlooks for Apple? Have there been any significant changes to EPS estimates, ratings, or target prices for the company since August 31?

The answer is no.

The Market Reacts

In terms of EPS expectations, analysts did not made any significant changes to EPS estimates for either fiscal year 2017 or fiscal year 2018 after the announcements. The mean EPS estimate for FY 2017 ($8.86) has not changed since August 31. The mean EPS estimate for FY 2018 ($9.94) also has not changed since August 31.

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In terms of ratings, analysts did not make any substantial changes to their opinions after the announcements. The overall number of Buy ratings has decreased by one (to 37 from 38) since August 31. The overall number of Hold ratings has increased by one (to four from three) over this same time frame. The overall number of Sell ratings (three) did not change during this period.

In terms of target prices, analysts did not change their opinions after the announcement. The mean target price for Apple has remained at $121.81 since August 31. This mean target price is 15.4% above the September 8 closing price of $105.52.

Related: Slowing Mobile Sales Upset the Apple Cart Again in Q2

In terms of the market reaction, the price of the stock increased by 2.1% (to $108.36 from $106.10) leading up to the event (from August 31 to September 7). However, on the day after the event (September 8), the price of the stock fell by 2.6% (to $104.52 from $108.36).

 

John Butters

Vice President, Senior Earnings Analyst

Mr. John Butters is Vice President and Senior Earnings Analyst at FactSet. His weekly research report, “Earnings Insight,” provides analysis and commentary on trends in corporate earnings data for the S&P 500 including revisions to estimates, year-over-year growth, performance relative to expectations, and valuations. He is a widely used source for the media and has appeared on CNBC, Fox Business News, and the Business News Network. In addition, he has been cited by numerous print and online publications such as The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, The New York Times, MarketWatch, and Yahoo! Finance. Mr. Butters has over 15 years of experience in the financial services industry. Prior to FactSet in January 2011, he worked for more than 10 years at Thomson Reuters (Thomson Financial), most recently as Director of U.S. Earnings Research (2007-2010).

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