Apple rises even as Baird cuts estimates

Apple shares rose on Wednesday even as investment firm Baird lowered its estimates for the all-important December quarter, citing the company’s recent challenges in China.

Analyst William Power, who has an outperform rating and $170 price target on Apple (AAPL), now expects 8M fewer iPhone units shipped in the quarter, resulting in a 5.6% haircut to total revenue and putting the firm at the low end of analysts estimates.

Power now expects Apple (AAPL) to generate $117.4B in revenue for the quarter with earnings per share of $1.86, down from a prior view of $2 per share. A consensus of analysts expect the company to generate $124.1B in revenue for the period.

The analyst also noted that the broader COVID-19 lockdowns could hurt near-term demand in China, but added that it’s likely a timing issue and not one of the demand going away. Power noted that of the 8M iPhone shipments, roughly 4M are recouped in the upcoming two quarters as China continues to work through its COVID-19 lockdowns.

“Though multiple uncertainties remain, we are conservatively lowering estimates for [first-quarter] and [fiscal 2023] driven by assembly challenges in China, with growing COVID lockdowns also a risk to China demand,” Power wrote in a note to clients.

Apple (AAPL) shares rose nearly 0.8% to $142.24 following comments made by Federal Reserve Chairman Jay Powell that spiked the broader markets.

On Tuesday, a key analyst said the company’s iPhone 14 Pro shipments could be up to 20M units less than expected as Apple (AAPL) deals with supply chain risks out of China. Seeking Alpha