‘No recovery in the iPhone business’

A veteran tech analyst just weighed in on Apple and he said don’t buy.

Barclays hired Tim Long as its new IT hardware and communications managing director and while initiating coverage of the whole IT hardware and communications equipment sector, Long gave tech giant Apple an equal weight rating and a $192 price target.

“For AAPL, we see no recovery in the iPhone business and expect growth to slow in the service business,” said Long in his first note on the stock to clients on Thursday.

Apple is generally a well-liked stock on Wall Street. Of the company’s 41 ratings on the Street, only 4 of them are sell, according to FactSet. Apple has 16 hold ratings and 21 buy ratings. But Long said Apple is losing share in its core market and the company is at near-high valuations.

Long said Apple’s business is diversified, “with different competitors across categories.” However, Long said valuations have recently reached 10-year highs.

“Share buybacks help but won’t be there forever.” he said.

Shares of Apple were 0.4% higher in premarket trading on Thursday.

The company’s stock is up more than 26% since the start of the year, but has taken a hit recently because of concerns about iPhone growth in China amid the trade war.

— with reporting from Michael Bloom