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Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares slipped on Tuesday as investment firm Evercore lowered its price target on the tech giant, noting margins could fall and there could be negative implications from foreign exchange headwinds and the weakness in the PC market.
Analyst Amit Daryanani lowered the firm’s Apple (AAPL) price target to $180 per share, down from $210, noting that in a recession, revenues could decline 3%, or 8% below current estimates.
It’s also possible that margins could fall 3% due to a decline in iPhone and Services revenue, though Daryanani added he did not expect the company to make “material changes” to research and development spending, which could hurt the stock even more.
Apple (AAPL) shares were fractionally lower to $141.36 in early trading.
In a recession scenario, the analyst noted that Apple (AAPL) could boost its buyback, as it has more than $80B in net cash, which could support the earnings multiple.
Daryanani also pointed out that the lowered price target was due to “incremental” foreign exchange issues, as the U.S. dollar has strengthened over the past few weeks, which could hurt revenues by 1% or more.
Additionally, the PC market has started to slow in recent months, not just for consumers, but businesses as well, Daryanani explained, which could also impact Apple (AAPL).
On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a bid from Apple (AAPL) to appeal a decision that upheld two of Qualcomm’s (QCOM) smartphone patents.
