SchaeffersResearch.com Poll
How does Steve Jobs' health impact your view of Apple?
Yes, Apple
(AAPL:
sentiment,
chart,
options)
will step into the earnings spotlight this afternoon, more than likely reporting something that the bulls will grasp onto as positive. However, this New York Post article suggests that some shareholders (if not a majority) are a bit more concerned about the health of Steve Jobs (a topic I touched on about a month ago). For those unfamiliar with Jobs' situation, he is a survivor of pancreatic cancer, and his condition came into question in June. When Jobs appeared at the firm's annual developers' conference he looked thin, but it was blamed on "an unspecified illness that required treatment with antibiotics." Since that appearance, neither Jobs nor AAPL has commented on his health. However, the article notes that Jobs' appearance and health were also commented on by Disney (DIS) directors (of which Jobs is included) after their latest board meeting.
I basically dismissed the impact of Jobs' health on AAPL when I started reading this article, until I read this: One investor polled by The Post acknowledged to recently selling down his stake by "a few million shares" as a hedge in case any more bad news comes out about Jobs' health. A bold move? A stupid move? You be the judge ... as The Post notes that AAPL shares are 11% lower since the June conference.
So what happens if AAPL does comment on Jobs' health, and it isn't good? Would that news have more of an impact than the earnings? This is a tricky situation, especially given the fact that AAPL is not one to comment on Jobs' health in a timely manner. His pancreatic cancer was not revealed until the tumor was removed. So, the appearance of Jobs may be more important than the appearance of the earnings ... rather than keeping an ear out, keep an eye out.
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