A quick look at analyst recommendations on Apple (AAPL) stock

Ever since Apple (AAPL) announced that it would no longer be reporting iPhone unit sales figures, the stock has been on a rough run. Shares have plunged 16% since the last earnings conference call when Apple executives made this key announcement.

Endorsing the speculation that iPhone sales are slowing down, multiple analysts have now come forward with bearish remarks and price target cuts. Let’s take a quick look at the analysts’ recommendations on the stock.

Currently, the stock has a MODERATE BUY rating, with an average price target of $236. This is at a 27% upside from the Tuesday’s trading price of $185.86. Therefore, despite the recent downgrades, the stock continues to hold some optimism in the market.

Of the 35 analysts covering the stock, 21 recommend BUY, while 13 have a HOLD rating. Only one analyst has recommended selling the stock.

Daniel Ives of Wedbush is at present the most bullish analyst, with a price estimate of $310. Reiterating his OUTPERFORM rating on November 5, Ives said, ““We continue to encourage investors to see the forest through the trees on this name and view last week as the first step in the ultimate re-rating of the stock higher over the coming years.”

Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs earlier today slashed Apple’s price target from $209 to $182, reiterating its NEUTRAL outlook.

Goldman Sachs analyst  Rod Hall stated, “While it now seems that Apple may have miscalculated on the price/feature balance for the XR, we also believe that severe Chinese demand weakness in late summer and a stronger U.S. dollar were unexpected headwinds for the company that were difficult to predict.”

Last week, Guggenheim Partners downgraded the stock to NEUTRAL from BUY and UBS slashed its 12-month price target to $225 from $240 as both analysts feel an increase in average selling price would no longer be able to offset falling sales.

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