Apple investors are still waiting for a bounce in the tech behemoth's stock from the release of the iPhone 15, which went on sale on Sept. 22. Still, although its stock has trended down since hitting a fresh high in late July, it's outperforming most stocks. On Tuesday, the IBD Relative Strength (RS) Rating for Apple stock climbed to 82, up from 78 the day before.
Apple Stock May Be Prepping To Run Higher
The upgraded 82 RS Rating, out of a best-possible 99, means that Apple stock price performance tops 82% of all stocks, regardless of industry, over the past year. It's notable because market research shows that the best stocks typically have an RS Rating above 80 in the early stages of their moves.
Among its other key ratings, Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple also has a strong 86 Earnings Per Share Rating, putting it in the top 14% of stocks for recent and long-term profit growth. The 86 rating is mostly for prior earnings strength. The smartphone and wearables maker's earnings rose just 5% last quarter and were flat year over year the quarter before that.
The Composite Rating for Apple stock is 75. The Composite score combines five separate proprietary ratings into one. The best growth stocks have a Composite Rating of 90 or better.
The weakest mark for Apple stock is its E Accumulation/Distribution Rating on an A+ to E scale. The E rating shows big funds are selling shares. However, the number of funds holding Apple stock has risen steadily over the past four quarters. There were 6,548 funds holding Apple in the December 2022-ended quarter and 6,790 in September, a bullish indicator.
Looking For The Best Stocks To Buy And Watch? Start Here
Recently Topped An All-Time High
Apple stock, a favorite and the largest holding of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, rose to an all-time high 198.23 on July 19. It is now considered extended and out of buy range after clearing a 153.16 buy point in a third-stage cup with handle. See if the stock forms a new pattern or follow-on buying opportunity like a three-weeks tight or pullback to the 50-day or 10-week moving average.
Apple stock traded around 172 Tuesday afternoon. Also on Tuesday, CEO Tim Cook filed with the SEC to sell 240,569 shares of Apple stock, valued at about $41.5 million.
Although still lackluster, both earnings and sales growth improved last quarter for the consumer device maker. Earnings-per-share grew 5% to $1.26 per share on a 1% dip in revenue to $81.8 billion. Look for the next report on or around Oct. 26.
Apple stock earns the No. 2 rank among its peers in the Telecom-Consumer Products industry group. Motorola Solutions is No. 1 and tiny communication services company Ooma, is No. 3 among the group's highest-rated stocks.
When looking for the best stocks to buy and watch, a stock's price strength relative to other stocks is a good indicator to keep a close on eye on.
The exclusive Relative Strength Rating from Investor's Business Daily identifies price performance with a 1 (worst) to 99 (best) score. The grade shows how a stock's price behavior over the last 52 weeks stacks up against all the other stocks in our database.
Please follow James DeTar on X, formerly known as Twitter, @JimDeTar
