Apple stock downgraded as Barclays warns on cooling iPhone demand

Apple’s shares rose around 50% to a record last year and saw its market value hit $3 trillion (Reuters file image)

Apple Inc. got itself a new bear as expectations of soft demand for its latest iPhone prompted analysts at Barclays Plc to downgrade the stock.

Barclays analysts led by Tim Long cut their rating on Apple to underweight and price target to $160 from $161, implying a 17% decline over the next year. The stock dropped as much as 1.4% in US premarket trading on Tuesday.

“We expect reversion after a year when most quarters were missed and the stock outperformed,” the analysts wrote in a note on Tuesday. “Our checks remain negative on volumes and mix for iPhone 15, and we see no features or upgrades that are likely to make the iPhone 16 more compelling.”

Apple’s shares rose around 50% to a record last year and saw its market value hit $3 trillion as investors bet that its flagship device will withstand a sluggish economy. However, doubts have emerged whether the stock will be able to repeat such hefty gains given rising competition from the likes of Huawei Technologies Co. and a Chinese government crackdown on foreign-made devices.

Barclays’s new underweight means Apple has five sell or equivalent ratings, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, in contrast to 34 buys and 14 holds. The stock’s consensus price target predicts a return of just 3.6% over the next year.