Apple Short Interest Jumps 13 Million Shares, Largest Rise on Nasdaq

September 27, 2016 by Douglas A. McIntyre

Among all stocks traded on the Nasdaq, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) had the largest increase in the number of shares sold short, up 13.1 billion shares to 60.1 billion in the latest period. Apparently some investors where not impressed by the new iPhone 7. The data were for the two weeks that ended on September 15.

The results of iPhone 7 early sales are nearly a month away, when Apple reports earnings on October 27. Apple no longer provides sales data for the first weekend or week, something it once did regularly.

Reports on sales have ranged from spectacular to mediocre. However, it is over the long haul, particularly the holidays, that matter. In some ways, that makes the quarterly report after the upcoming one more important. It covers December.

Reviews of the iPhone 7 have been mostly positive, although most analysts say it is an upgrade to the iPhone 6 family and not a revolutionary product.

The other primary concern about Apple is China sales, which management says are absolutely essential to the company’s long-term future. These sales fell 33% to $8.8 billion. Competition is home-grown to some extent and includes Lenovo, Xiaomi, OnePlus and Huawei.

Apple still has a tall hill to climb with the iPhone 7.

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