Apple has accumulated a decline of nearly 10% since its all-time high on July 28 and has lost almost US$ 500 billion in market value. Although its shares rose 1.5% this Tuesday, the company ranked among the 25 worst-performing companies in the S&P 500 over the past three weeks.
The decline brought Apple's market capitalization down from over US$ 5 trillion to about US$ 4.56 trillion. This drop contrasts with the performance of the Nasdaq 100 and the semiconductor sector, which advanced strongly during the same period.
Why Apple’s shares fell
The decline began after Apple reported its fiscal third-quarter results. The company reported revenues of US$ 109.42 billion, a year-over-year growth of 16.4% that exceeded Wall Street's expectations.
Sales of the iPhone also reached a record during the June quarter. However, investors focused their attention on projections for the next period.
Apple anticipated revenue growth of between 9% and 11%, below the 12% that the market expected. Additionally, it warned of restrictions in obtaining some components necessary for manufacturing its devices.
Apple lost ground to the rise of AI-related stocks
While Apple's shares declined, the Nasdaq 100 rose about 8% and the Philadelphia semiconductor index increased by 14% over the past weeks.
This movement was driven by renewed interest in companies benefiting from spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure. The earnings reports from Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet also alleviated some doubts about the large investments directed towards this technology.
Apple took a different path than several of its main competitors. The company avoided building a large in-house artificial intelligence infrastructure and prioritized agreements with third parties.
