Stock Analyst: AAPL Under Valued Due To Cash On Hand, Innovation, & Performance In Tough Market

by , 2:00 PM EDT, September 27th, 2002

According to Forbes Magazine, a stock analyst with Ragen MacKenzie is saying that Apple is currently undervalued. The analyst, Jonathan S. Guerkink, is saying that Apple's cash reserves, ongoing innovation, and a slight sales increase for 2002 "in a rough market" make Apple's market capitalization of US$5.3 billion too low. From the Forbes piece, titled "Makers & Shakers:"

Tasty Apple The personal computer industry is gasping for breath, still in the midst of a two-year-long bear hug. One in the squeeze is Apple Computer. The company has gone boom and bust several times, and the stock is down a third thus far this year. But it boasts $4 billion in net cash (cash and short-term securities, less debt of $316 million). That makes its market capitalization of $5.3 billion too low, says Jonathan S. Guerkink, an analyst at Ragen MacKenzie. You should buy in.

Apple has been and remains an innovative company, and it enjoys a loyal base of customers in creative fields like publishing and graphic design. Guerkink estimates that Apple, which remains profitable, will close the September fiscal year with $5.7 billion in sales, a 7% jump in a rough market.

You can read the full article at Yahoo!'s Web site, though the rest of it deals with other companies. As of this writing, AAPL is trading at 14.79, up 0.09 (+0.61%), on light volume

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The Mac Observer Spin:

It's always refreshing to see someone on Wall Street publicly say what many AAPL followers know: Apple is doing a good job in a harsh market, and the company's hoard of cash makes today's stock price a good buy. It seems simple, but Apple's stock has languished at current values for months.