Apple Inc. (AAPL): 1 Reason Bears Should Change Their Tone

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has apparently suffered enough as a stock. From topping out at more than $700 a share in September to bottoming out at $380 just this past April, the stock has taken a beating, but it has slowly gotten back to its knees, and now it has apparently gotten some moral support by a bear hug. Or at least, a hug by a bear.

Jeffrey Gundlach, who runs investment firm DoubleLine Capital and has long been bearish on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) stock – especially in 2012 – did finally admit in an interview recently that his equity portfolio does, in fact, contain Apple.  Could Gundlach have possibly gone soft and felt a little sympathy for the tech giant, which was knocked down a point where its stock is trading at nine times earnings – well below the 15x average of the S&P 500.

“We bought it at $405 the first time, and I think our average cost is below $425. I said Apple would go below $425. I wasn’t committed to buying it, but I think Apple is an interesting play,” Gundlach said in the interview.

“Apple’s sorta cheap. I think at a 7 P/E, it’s priced for no new product. It doesn’t need a new product. It can keep selling a whole bunch of expensive new phones and iPads, and they’ll be a cash cow. I sorta like Apple.”

Well, how is that? A “sorta” ringing endorsement from one of the bigger known Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) bears around. What more of an endorsement of Apple would anyone need? Now we have to mention here that Gundlach was not quoted  as stating his price target for selling his piece so we don’t know if his bearish tendencies will rise up again when the stock reaches a certain level.

So for now we have to go with the belief that he is in for the longer haul at this point, as he essentially is going on the assumption that Apple will put out a new product of some kind and that will send the stock higher.

What does this mean for some other Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) bears out there in the market?

While we are certainly surprised by Gundlach’s position on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), his “endorsement” seems that it could be a little hollow. While on the one hand, he bought into Apple at $400 on basically the assumption that no new devices will be coming out, he also hears the same rumors that we al hear, that there may not be any new products, just updated current devices, in the rest of this calendar year. So this may lead to a question – do you think Gundlach is talking to the media about his position now to try to set up a short opportunity on the price, or do you think he really has softened his position and is a long-term holder now?

What is your take on Gundlach’s endorsement of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)? Are you a believer in the stock’s future fortunes? Give us your feedback in the comments section below.

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