IT News on October 21st: According to a report by technology media macrumors today, Loop Capital (Loop Capital) has downgraded its rating of Apple's stock from "Buy" to "Hold." The firm believes that it is unlikely for Apple to make up for the approximately 13 million units of iPhone that were originally scheduled to be shipped in the second half of 2026 but were later cut from the plan.

It is reported that Loop Capital has lowered Apple's target stock price from $370 (Note from IT: the current exchange rate is approximately 2,476 RMB) to $330 (the current exchange rate is approximately 2,208 RMB). Previously, the firm stated that shortages of memory and processors had led to delays in iPhone shipments, and Apple was attempting to make up for this lost sales volume in 2027. However, according to the latest supply chain investigations, Loop Capital no longer agrees with this assessment.

The institution also predicts that Apple's shipments in the December quarter iPhone will be around 79 million units, lower than the initial estimate of 85 million units. By 2027, the total shipments for iPhone are expected to reach 260 million units, but with a lower average selling price, the revenue forecast for iPhone has been lowered from $315 billion (about 2.11 trillion yuan at current exchange rates) to $285 billion (about 1.91 trillion yuan at current exchange rates).

Apple's well-publicized strategy of releasing products in batches also makes its financial prospects more difficult to predict. The Pro series was released in September, the Duo will be launched on October 23rd, but the standard version of the iPhone, the iPhone 18e, and the iPhone Air 2 are not expected to be released until the spring of 2027.