AAPL shares: Jobs' resignation changes nothing

AAPL shares traded lower after Steve Jobs stepped down as Apple CEO. But AAPL shares, which fell hard initially, were trending only slightly lower Thursday.

|
Mary Altaffer/AP
A customer takes a photo of the Apple flagship store on Fifth Ave. before entering Aug. 25, 2011 in New York. With Steve Jobs bowing out as CEO on Wednesday, APPL shares initially fell sharply in overnight trading but recovered some of those losses in Thursday's trading.

Although Apple shares were trading slightly lower Thursday, after falling 7 percent in after-hours trading on Wednesday, Steve Jobs' departure from his CEO role at the tech company will not materially affect the company, one analyst believes.

"I don't think this changes anything," Jason Maynard, analyst and managing director at Wells Fargo, told CNBC. "I don't think it's going to change product strategy. I don't think it's going to change how they allocate capital. I think Apple's going to keep being Apple, which is make amazing products."

Jobs resigned as CEO on Wednesday in a brief letter in which he named his successor, Tim Cook, who has stepped in as interim CEO numerous times while Jobs battled pancreatic cancer. Jobs will remain chairman of the tech giant's board.

Maynard compared Jobs' departure to the retirement of basketball superstar Michael Jordan. Although neither is replaceable, he said there is no reason why Apple cannot carry on its same vision with Jobs as chairman and the "world-class talent" that work at the company.

Maynard added that he is not surprised that there is a little bit of weakness in the stock's price after the announcement of Jobs' resignation, although he still thinks Apple is a buying opportunity.

"Most institutional investors have already thought about, considered, and, if you will, valued Apple assuming there is a post-Steve Jobs era,” Maynard said.

Jobs' departure will not make it any easier for companies to compete with Apple, Maynard said.

Some of Apple's competitors include Google, Nokia and Hewlett-Packard.

You've read  of  free articles. Subscribe to continue.
QR Code to AAPL shares: Jobs' resignation changes nothing
Read this article in
https://www.csmonitor.com/Business/Latest-News-Wires/2011/0825/AAPL-shares-Jobs-resignation-changes-nothing
QR Code to Subscription page
Start your subscription today
https://www.csmonitor.com/subscribe