With the stock market closed for Good Friday, it seems like a good time to share what analysts are saying about three tech stocks: Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL), Google (Nasdaq: GOOG), and Priceline. According to Wall Street, Reuters, and MSNBC, these three companies are on pace to reach $1,000 per share within the next two years.
Of the three, Priceline looks to me most like those dot-com companies that fueled the last tech bubble. At least Apple and Google make or license hardware and provide content and technology. (I have an admitted bias toward hardware, having covered manufacturing for about 20 years. But it is a bias I continue to re-evaluate.)
“[The $1,000 level] really shouldn’t matter, but people still remember the dot-com bubble,” said S&P Capital IQ analyst Scott Kessler. “The fact that we are seeing stocks rise to these levels may be a signal of that sentiment again.”
Another footnote to the report is particularly interesting to those of us in the supply chain. One company that has already reached and exceeded the $1,000 barrier is Berkshire Hathaway. It owns the distributor TTI Inc., which closed its acquisition of Sager Electronics this week. TTI also owns Mouser Electronics Inc.
Says MSNBC:
It should be noted that there are a number of other companies with stock prices that have risen above $1,000.
Those companies include class B shares of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, which once traded above $3,000 before the company opted for a 50-for-one stock split. It now trades around $80. Berkshire’s class A common shares, however, are now priced around $121,295 each.
Who do you think will hit the $1,000 mark next? Better yet, if you were going to invest your $1,000 in one stock, which one would it be?
I think Apple's star will continue to shine for at least a few more years. They have a very creative group of people who are coming up with very user-friendly and impressive products. I don't think Apple has run out of ideas to keep on leading the game in the market just yet. Apple products are very innovative and eye catching. Consumers are happy with what they are getting for their money and have confidence in Apple and they will again queue up for its new products in the months to come.
Therefore, I don't see any reason why one should not invest in Apple as the future still looks bright for it.
So, Apple's stock price will climb to $1,000 this year and then to $3K in 2013 and $6K in 2014. That seems to be the trajectory and since the company's sales will continue to grow at 100 percent each year and profits 140 percent per year, the sky is indeed the limit. Apple is unlikely to trip, the competition will never catch up or get their acts together and there's an endless pool of money to invest in its stock.
Why don't we all take advantage of this sure-fire lottery. Let's all buy Apple shares, quit our jobs, kick back and retire to southern France to eat caviar?
Hint to answer: Not all of us believe the hype and even though we are so obviously wrong today, we just might be right!
@Cryptoman: I agree you. If I were to invest in a company it would surely be Apple. They have not run out of ideas currently and are doing well in catering to their market. But what concerns me is that will they be able to sustain this growth in the upcoming days? We have often seen companies growing exponentially for a certain time and then crashing.
For my investments sake I hope that they continue to grow in the future :)
There is no investment that can make you win forever. The risk involved is what pushes the growth of an investment. Those who can take the risk, reap the benefits when it comes to profitable investments.
There is certainly a limit to how much Apple can grow and keep its current profitability and success. The trick and the skill is to be able to reead the signs that indicate the slow down in its growth in advance so that you one can make a timely exit to avoid losses. Once you are out, you then look for another profitable business and other promising ventures to invest in.
Invertments need to be dynamic to ensure long term returns in my opinion.
I agree with your comment regarding Priceline, and I don't see the incentive for it's stock price to beat the other two to the $1K mark. I suspect Apple will be the first to get there.
Regarding Apple: I think it is the reaction of the street that prompts some of the tongue-in-cheek analysis: the company can do no wrong, even if it abuses its workers, can't get its products out on time and sues its strategic partners. Seriously, would any other company get away with this?
Regarding Priceline: Yeah, I was surprised it was in the running--it seems to me there are at least 2 or 3 similar models out there and I'm a little perplexed why it stands above the rest. It reminds me a lot of the dotcom bubble, and the companies that rose to the top back then (in certain market segments) don't exist any more.
@Wale: I agree with you completely and that is why I said that I was concerned about Apple sustaining its growth in the upcoming years.
I have seen that over the years it becomes difficult for companies to grow as rapidly as they did before. At a later stage, it just becomes a game of sustainability. If a company is able to sustain is profits, keep its shareholders and consumers happy I believe it is doing a great job. And I would love to invest in such an enterprise.
EBN Dialogue enables and encourages you to participate in live chats with notable leaders and luminaries. Not only editors and journalists, but the entire EBN community is able to comment and ask questions. Listed below are upcoming and archived chats.
Archived Dialogues
Thailand Stages a Comeback Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Euro-Crisis: What It Means for High-Tech Firms Join EBN Editor in Chief Bolaji Ojo and Contributing Editor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday, July 12, at 10:00 a.m. EDT for a Live Chat on high-tech and Europe's economic difficulties.
Microsoft Surface: Potential Winners & Losers What are the implications for the electronics industry supply chain of Microsoft Corp.'s decision to launch its own tablet PC? Join industry veteran and EE Times' systems and OEM expert Rick Merritt on Tuesday, July 3, at 12:00 pm EDT for a Live Chat on this subject.
Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Peter Drucker famously said "Trying to predict the future is like trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window." Yet in the razor's-edge world of electronics—with a lean supply chain and just-in-time demands—the need to know the future is vital.
While no one really can accurately predict the future, we can take guidance from another Drucker saying which is the best way to predict the future is to create it.
You've heard the saying "the No. 1 supply chain risk is your people." That hasn't always been the case. But today's complex global supply chain requires a new type of multitalented employee. It's one who understands, finance, marketing, economics, is savvy with technology, graceful with relationships and can think analytically.
Where are these people? Are universities properly preparing the next generation supply chain professionals? How do train your existing workforce for these new, demanding positions?
Brian Fuller, editor-in-chief of EBN, will lead a 60-minute Avnet Velocity panel discussion that will ask and answer these and other questions swirling around today's supply-chain talent challenges.
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