APPLE Inc shares have climbed 39 percent since plummeting to a six-month low in February, and shareholders say demand for Macintosh personal computers may continue the rally.
Sales of PCs led by the new MacBook Air, which is less than 2.5 centimeters thick, may have countered a post-holiday drop in iPod and iPhone orders in Apple's second quarter.
The Air's success may help Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs overcome concern that a slowing economy will curb consumers' spending on music players and mobile phones. Apple gave a forecast that fell below analysts' estimates in eight of the past nine quarters.
"It may be affected by the economy but we're talking about a company that has a multiple-year, very clear strategy to superior growth," Dan Chung, CEO of Fred Alger Management Inc in New York, said in a Bloomberg Radio interview. The firm owns about 1.9 million Apple shares. "A lot of investors who saw the stock fall to about the US$120 level realize now, in hindsight, that they've missed an opportunity."
Apple fell US$7.96, or 4.7 percent, to US$160.20 on Tuesday in Nasdaq Stock Market trading.
Apple, which began offering the iPhone in June, said it had sold 4 million up to January 15.
Apple may release an i-Phone that connects to the Internet using faster networks, as well as redesigned Mac desktops and notebooks for back-to-school shoppers this year, he said.
Jobs, 53, introduced the MacBook Air in January. The aluminum-clad computer has a 13.3-inch display, a full-sized keyboard and a built-in camera for video conferencing.
"Most contacts report Air sales are above their expectations," Bill Fearnley Jr, an analyst at FTN Midwest Securities Corp in Boston, said in a March 26 report.