Apple – one of the favorite stocks in the portfolios of readers – produced bad news yesterday. Therefore, I will once again discuss its high value for you. The stock has now lost for four consecutive days. Is a crash imminent?

The China problem for Apple The problems or challenges are multifaceted. Apple is a very stable company, and bad news should not significantly affect its stock price. However, Apple seems to have suffered a setback in China: iPhone sales have decreased by 24%. This number has naturally attracted attention.

The -24% refers to a six-week period starting on January 1st. This means that Apple has exceeded the market in a negative sense. Smartphone sales in economically troubled China have decreased by about 7%, with Apple having to endure above-average declines.

The reason for the poor performance is apparently the tougher competition, especially in the more expensive smartphone segment. The competitor Huawei has reportedly regained strength. This is the same Huawei that has been heavily fought against in the West and has managed to establish itself in the expensive price segment. Other manufacturers, such as Xiaomi, have had success in the middle price segment.

The numbers are not alarming However, this is partly due to the statistics. In the first six weeks of 2023, a year ago, there were unusually high sales figures. Smartphone production was reduced in the last quarter and especially in December 2022 due to problems, which in turn boosted sales at the beginning of 2023.

The valuation basis is distorted – which means that there is pressure on Apple, but it is manageable. The numbers also show that even in China, the sky is not the limit. The economy is struggling there, and Apple has also been punished for it.

But my conviction remains that Apple is not doing everything, but almost everything right. The company is now increasingly investing in AI. This will not show immediate results, but in the large market that Apple serves, it will work in the medium term. The company continues to dominate its market in an unrivaled way. Fluctuations – both in the real world, here in China, and in the stock market – are part of it.

Apple: The problem in China – WKN: 865985 – ISIN: US0378331005 Source: https://fundamental.aktienscreener.com/US0378331005/EI/apple-inc/data