Apple shares face pressure after Loop Capital cuts rating on iPhone shipment concerns

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Apple shares face pressure after downgrade

Highlights

Loop Capital downgraded Apple to hold from buy and cut its price target to $330 from $370, citing iPhone shipment concerns.
Analyst Baruah noted sluggish iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max sales, shifting Loop's view from supply constraints to demand problems impacting unit expectations.
Apple shares, up 26% year to date, now trade at 36 times earnings—a five-year high—prompting valuation caution versus broader Wall Street optimism.

Brokerage downgrade highlights iPhone demand risk

As reported by CNBC, citing Loop Capital, the investment firm downgraded Apple to hold from buy and cut its price target to $330 from $370, implying about 4% downside from Monday’s close.

Analyst Ananda Baruah says the firm still supports Apple’s longer-term market share gains and its Services business, but sees a need for a reset in the stock’s fundamental catalysts after recent appreciation. He says that view is tied in part to reduced iPhone shipments and a valuation that has climbed to a five-year high.

Baruah says Loop previously believed Apple could recover many of the lost September quarter and December quarter iPhone unit shipments through calendar 2027 because the cuts appeared to be driven by supply constraints, including memory and processors, rather than demand. He says that assumption no longer appears to hold, with sluggish sales of the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max now weighing on expectations.

Valuation debate sets Apple apart from Wall Street consensus

Apple shares have climbed 26% year to date as the company expands artificial intelligence and cloud technology integrations and increases subscription revenue across its ecosystem. According to Loop Capital, that rally has lifted the stock to 36 times price-to-earnings, marking a five-year valuation high.

Loop Capital’s stance differs from the broader Wall Street view. LSEG data shows 25 of the 43 analysts covering Apple rate the stock buy or strong buy, while 14 have hold ratings, and Apple shares slip about 1% after the downgrade.

Our earlier analysis of the Nasdaq 100 selloff highlighted how the index slid below its 20-day and 50-day moving averages after US inflation data, even as Treasury yields fell—an unusual mix that pointed to shifting risk sentiment. We also noted that near-term downside risk was rising despite the longer-term uptrend holding above the 200-day average, making key support levels crucial for gauging whether selling pressure would persist.

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