Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) slumped on Monday after a news report said that the tech giant has slashed its component orders for its latest smartphone model, iPhone5 due to weaker-than-expected demand.
The Wall Street Journal, citing people with knowledge of the matter, reported that orders for LCD screens, which are used on iPhone5, have fallen to nearly half of what was initially anticipated by the company, adding that Japan Display Inc. and Sharp Corp., the two companies that supply liquid-crystal display panels to Apple, have started to cut the production.
Meanwhile, analysts at UBS and several other Wall Street firms said that the report of orders cuts seems to be old news as Apple sent notifications to its suppliers in Asia, last month. Peter Misek, senior tech analyst at Jefferies said, “We think it’s old news, ( iPhone5) is selling well, but not as well as hoped…it’s still the biggest-selling device of all time at 50 million units, but there were hopes that it would be better than that,” according to CNBC.
Shares of world’s largest offshore rig operator Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG) gained on Monday after it disclosed that well known billionaire investor, Carl Icahn, has acquired 1.56% stake in the company and is seeking to extend his holding by more than 5%, which would allow him to become one of the largest shareholder of the company. Following the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, Transocean’s market capitalization capsized more than 50 percent and till date shares are 40% down than what they were before the incident. Just last week, the Swiss Company settled its dispute with the U.S. Government by paying a penalty of $1.14 billion associated to the BP’s Gulf of Mexico oil spill in 2010.
Harry Winston Diamond Corporation (USA) (NYSE: HWD) shares climbed on Monday after the high-end jewelry and watch maker’s parent company HW Holdings was acquired by Swiss watchmaker, Swatch Group, in an all cash deal worth $750 million, allowing the Canadian Company to focus on its diamond mining business. The move allows Swatch Group, which is world’s leading watchmaker in term of sales (8.1 billion francs sales in 2012), to gain traction in high-end jewelry market, currently dominated by Richemont with its flagship brand Cartier. Buying Harry Winston would allow Swatch to expand its product offerings in Asia, a market where the demand for luxury bags, watches and other luxury accessories is growing at a brisk pace. Swatch Group is globally renowned for its Omega brand watches.
Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) shares edged down on Monday in spite of being upgraded by Deutsche Bank. The bank raised its price target on the stock to $40 from $24 and upwardly revised its rating on the stock to “buy” from “hold”, citing social networking’s faster-than-expected growth in mobile feeds ads. Deutsche Bank expects Facebook’s ad- revenue will climb by 40% in 2013.
Shares of hhgregg Inc (NYSE: HGG) slumped on Monday after the appliances and electronic goods retailer, in its preliminary quarterly report, warned that fiscal third-quarter results will be weaker-than-expected and slashed its outlook on full-year results, citing declining sales in video and other categories which will offset stronger sales in appliances, mobile-phones and computing.
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