One Very Bearish Prediction for Apple Inc. (AAPL)

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is up close to 3% since the start of 2013, and many investors hurt by the stock’s selloff last year are undoubtedly hoping that more gains are in store.

At Insider Monkey, we’ve covered a variety of bullish scenarios for the tech giant, the majority of which rely on a new device being introduced this year. Whether this product comes in the form of a low-cost iPhone (see Is Apple Planning a Low Cost, Larger iPhone?), or if it’s the much-anticipated smart TV (see Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s ‘iTV’ Could Add $4.50 to EPS), there are a number of different positive growth drivers that can push shares higher.

Still, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t room for discussion amongst the bears as well. One investor in particular is Doug Kass, president and founder of Seabreeze Partners. Mr. Kass also contributes to TheStreet’s Real Money.

On CNBC earlier this week, Kass was on the air discussing Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s prospects in 2013, which are particularly dim in his opinion. Here are some of his comments:

“One of my predictions last year – one of my good predictions – is that Apple would be a superior share price performer most of the year, and then in September it would fall down dramatically and obviously I got that right. I think this year, you see continuation of the weakness of the last three months, and that Apple’s earnings will be persistently reduced in the first half of 2013, under the competitive pressure of the Microsoft Surface, which obviously started up poorly but will gain traction in the middle of the year, Google’s Nexus, Amazon’s Kindle, et cetera.”

So, it appears that at least part of Kass’s argument against Apple’s investment prospects are increased competition in the tablet space, which is valid, but he also points to a situation that could wreak far more havoc on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL).

Continue reading for the rest of his AAPL predictions…