Here are your daily Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) stock news and rumors for Wednesday, June 29.
Final Cut Apology: Apple released Final Cut Pro X, the latest update to its popular video editing tool, on Jun. 21. The new version did not release with a large number of the features included in previous Final Cut, relying instead on third party app developers to release expansions for the program. As a result, a large number of consumers and critics have slammed the latest Apple Final Cut software in the press. The outcry against Apple’s latest release has been so strong in fact that Apple is not only restoring many of the excluded features, it is refunding consumers who have purchased Final Cut Pro X since its release. The Next Web (via Mac Rumors) published a report on Tuesday that reprinted emails sent from Apple to disgruntled customers offering them the refund. Apple’s iTunes and App Store policy typically states that all sales are final.
Free iPhone (on Contract): RBC Capital analyst Mike Abramsky has a different opinion than his peers on what Apple may announce this fall concerning a new iPhone. While other analysts and reporters are predicting that Apple will announce a smaller, cheaper iPhone alongside a technologically advanced iPhone 5 in September, Abramsky believes that the company will instead announce that the iPhone 3GS, the model released in 2009, will become free alongside a two-year contract with AT&T (NYSE: T). His evidence for this, according to a Wednesday report at Barrons, is a ChangeWave Survey conducted earlier in June that asked repondents, “If the Apple iPhone 3GS became available for free ($0) but required a two-year AT&T service contract, how likely is it that you get a new iPhone 3GS for yourself or someone else in the future.” The results of the survey found that 14% of the 1500 respondents answered that they were “very likely” to take advantage of that offer. The analyst does believe that Apple will deliver a streamlined, budget version of the iPhone but not until 2012.
Q3 Apple Earnings Results: Apple announced on Tuesday that it would hold its quarterly conference call to discuss its financial results for the April to June quarter on July 19. The call will be held at 5 p.m. EST. Investors are approaching this call with some trepidation. Apple has historically released a new model of iPhone during that period of the year, but it did not even announce a new product during the period this year. iPad and iPhone sales are still expected to stay robust.
As of this writing, Anthony John Agnello did not own a position in any of the stocks named here. Follow him on Twitter at @ajohnagnello and become a fan of InvestorPlace on Facebook.
