Apple Down on Analyst’s iPod Delay Prediction

Apple Computer’s stocks on Wednesday dropped to their lowest value in eight months due to a Wall Street analyst’s prediction that the Cupertino, Calif.-based computer and electronics behemoth will delay the release of its newest editions of the mega-popular iPod music player, Reuters reports.

Apple’s stocks dropped by 2.9 percent to $55.76, following the fall to its season low of $55.41, according to Reuters. 

Shaw Wu, the analyst with American Technology Research, predicted that the release of Apple’s newest upgraded iPod Nano would be bumped from the third quarter of this year to the fourth, and that the debut of a wide-screen video iPod that was expected in the fourth quarter would be bumped to the first half of 2007, Reuters reports.

The drop in stock value comes at a time when various analysts say iPod Nano sales have been slowing and that overall sales of the digital music player will drop in the fourth quarter.

In the past, Apple has achieved strong sales due to its regular release of upgraded or otherwise enhanced iPods and related products, but Wu told Reuters Apple’s most recent iPod release was back in October.

“The stock has pulled back as the overall tech market has been weak, but there is also a lack of new product momentum. The Nano was introduced last October; it was very strong but it hasn’t done that well, and it is in need of a refresh,” Wu told Reuters.

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