Jefferies Downgrades Apple Over Inflated iPhone Optimism

Analyst Edison Lee downgraded the stock to ‘Underperform’ from ‘Hold’ and slightly adjusted the price target to $205.16, down from $205.82.

Apple Inc. (AAPL) stock drew investor attention on Friday after Jefferies revised its outlook on the tech giant, citing overly optimistic expectations surrounding future iPhone sales.

Analyst Edison Lee downgraded Apple’s stock to ‘Underperform’ from ‘Hold’ and slightly adjusted the price target to $205.16, down from $205.82, according to TheFly. 

Apple stock inched 0.7% lower in Friday’s premarket and was among the top five trending equities on Stocktwits. Retail sentiment around the stock remained in ‘bearish’ territory amid ‘low’ message volume levels. 

The revised forecast comes amid concerns that investor enthusiasm around upcoming iPhone models has already been priced into the stock. Lee highlighted that demand for the iPhone 17 benefits from a pricing strategy that avoids increases on higher-end models, specifically the Pro and Pro Max, while introducing what he described as an "effective price cut" on the base version. 

However, the analyst believes these factors have already inflated expectations, making the market overly confident in the upcoming upgrade cycle.

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