Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) dropped $3.04 last week (1.9%), after posting a new 52-week high on Monday. The company remains the best-performing stock by a wide margin among the 30 equities that comprise the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA). The company’s stock is up 32.15% year to date, well above second-place McDonald’s 21.71% improvement.
The company’s market cap at Friday’s close was $810.19 billion, so its position as the world’s most valuable publicly traded company remains secure. But a 2% drop in Apple’s share price means that investors lost $16.2 billion in market value last week. That’s more than the market cap of Fiat Chrysler or Best Buy.
Qualcomm filed a lawsuit against a number of Apple’s iPhone manufacturing partners last week, seeking royalty payments that have been withheld over a dispute between Qualcomm and Apple. That sent Apple stock down about 3% on Wednesday.
The political situation in Washington is viewed by many investors and analysts as negative for a major tax reform bill by the end of this year. A tax holiday that would allow Apple to repatriate all or some of its $240 billion cash pile currently stashed offshore is similarly unlikely to go anywhere this year.
On the plus side of the ledger, reports that Apple’s new top-of-the-line iPhone may have a retail price of $1,000 caused Goldman Sachs analysts to boost its price target on Apple stock from $164 to $170 and maintain a Buy rating. The firm expects strong demand for an expected 5.8-inch phone.
Also noteworthy is Berkshire Hathaway’s increase in its holdings of Apple stock from 57.4 million to 129.36 million. Warren Buffett doubled his stake in Apple at the end of last year and, as of the end of March, doubled it again.
Apple shares closed at $152.96 on Friday in a 52-week range of $91.50 to $154.36. The consensus 12-month price target is $153.96 in a price target range of $104 to $202 per share.
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