14 DAY TRIAL // American business magnates Donald Trump and Carl Icahn seem to have completely opposite views on Apple and its fluctuating stock valuation.
One is disappointed that the iPhone doesn’t have a bigger screen yet, so he’s sold all his shares.
The other has bought an extra $500 million (€365.92 million) worth of stock, to hold a $4.1 billion (€3.0 billion) position in the Cupertino company as of now.
Trump relays to his 2.5 million followers on Twitter, “I predicted Apple's stock fall based on their dumb refusal to give the option of a larger iPhone screen like Samsung. I sold my Apple stock.”
Visibly affected by the lack of a bigger iPhone screen, he continues his Twitter rant, saying, “Steve Jobs is spinning in his grave - Apple has lost both vision and momentum - must move fast to get magic back!”
Many of his followers were quick to respond with a different view. Some seem to realize that Apple doesn’t do what investors say, preferring to innovate at its own pace, a strategy that has always paid off for the Mac maker, at least until now.
Icahn, on the other hand, seems to have more faith in Apple and its ability to turn things around.
Knowing that a potential new iWatch and Apple TV refresh could help the stock rebound, Icahn has bought another $500 million in the company.
The opportunistic Icahn made his move right after the stock took a 7-point tumble on lower-than-expected iPhone sales. He now has a multi-billion position in Apple Inc. and continues to push hard for a $150 billion (€109.77 billion) buyback program. Apple, however, won't barge.
Icahn is buying the shares while they’re cheap, anticipating a huge comeback, while Trump seems to have sold his at the worst time possible.
Trump’s tweets also seem to suggest that his AAPL investments have become somewhat of a personal vendetta for him.
He may not know a lot about screen sizes and choosing a customer base, but he is right about one thing: Apple does need to move fast to get its magic back. Neither him nor Icahn is satisfied with Apple's performance, regardless of their contrasting views of the company.
Disclaimer
This is a Personal Thoughts piece reflecting the author’s personal opinion on matters relating to Apple and / or the products associated with the Apple brand. This article should not be taken as the official stance of Softpedia on Apple-related matters.