The Business Press Maven

Try Jim Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS
CLICK HERE NOW

Can't Get a Clear Signal on iPhone Sales

07/06/07 - 11:26 AM EDT

Marek Fuchs

(Editor's note: To access some of these stories, registration or a subscription may be required. Please check the individual links for the site's policy.)

The Business Press Maven has built his Street cred by telling investors what he has learned after reading the day's business media. So ... want me to tell you how the iPhone is doing? Lean in close, and I'll tell you. Ready?

Apple's AAPL iPhone is underselling expectations. That's what I read. Actually, it's overselling expectations. I read that, too. Wait. Turns out, it's overselling stated expectations, but underselling whispered expectations. No, no, it's hitting the whispered number, but a week later, possibly. That's not right: It's already activated the million that was the whispered number! Actually, it doesn't even matter how it's selling, because margins are rich. But margins don't matter, either, because of some emerging iPhone partnerships in Europe. But margins must matter -- because the European release is going to be limited.

Read some of these clips for yourself if you want. But be advised that you probably want to take motion-sickness medication beforehand.

Together, we've seen some fathomlessly bad coverage from the business media. But this one might take the fathomlessly bad cake.

Forget about deciding whether the iPhone beat expectations. I think it might be easier to catch a moonbeam in a jar than figure out what expectations actually were. From Bloomberg, we are told that expectations were for 200,000 and then again 350,000.

Previous «
1 2 3 4
At the time of publication, Fuchs had no positions in any of the stocks mentioned in this column.

A journalist with a background on Wall Street, Marek Fuchs has written the County Lines column for The New York Times for the past five years. He also contributes regular breaking news and feature stories to many of the paper's other sections, including Metro, National and Sports. Fuchs was the editor-in-chief of Fertilemind.net, a financial Web site twice named "Best of the Web" by Forbes Magazine. He was also a stockbroker with Shearson Lehman Brothers in Manhattan and a money manager. He is currently writing a chapter for a book coming out in early 2007 on a really embarrassing subject. He lives in a loud house with three children. Fuchs appreciates your feedback; click here to send him an email.


The Business Press Maven


07/05/07
Blasting Holiday Stock Announcements

The media made a Bear Stearns out of a molehill, but one cub got it right.


07/02/07
iOverkill Drowns Out Bigger Story

Distracted by the iPhone, the media ignored a technological glitch that led to broken trades.


06/30/07
Baby's First Merger (and Other Tales of Business Start-Ups)

Plus, a look at the UPS story, the traps of winning and more.


05/19/08
Cramer on Top Searched Stocks: Yahoo!

Yahoo! is among the most searched stocks on TheStreet.com. Here's what Cramer had to say about the stock recently.


05/17/08
Jim Cramer's Best Blogs

Catch up on his thinking on the hottest topics of the past week.


04/26/08
Coming Week: Make or Break

Investors will have to deal with a Fed meeting and another flood of earnings and economic data.


05/19/08
Top Rocket Stocks: Ensco

Ensco International and Echelon have the potential to move higher in coming days.


04/28/08
Monday's Analysts' Upgrades, Downgrades

See who made what calls.


05/19/08
Telecom Giants See a Savior in Video

The addition of video is helping telecom companies compete against cable and satellite companies.


05/19/08
Contract Expiration Tempers Oil's Rise

The June West Texas Intermediate contract reflects selling pressure ahead of Tuesday's expiration. But stocks in the sector are generally trading higher.


05/19/08
Analysts' Upgrades, Downgrades: Amazon

See who made what calls.


Your Recent Quotes: Quote Up0 | Quote Down0
Dow S&P 500 NASDAQ
Oil*
Gold
10 Yr
0.00%
%
%
%
Data delayed 20 min
Sign up for our FREE newsletters now.

Keep on top of the market and the critical information you need to make more profitable investing decisions.

  • Cramer's Daily Booyah!
  • Before the Bell

Privacy Policy

See All Free Newsletters

Premium Stock Ideas