Apple stock lower after major shake-up of quarterly reports

Apple stock plunged as much as 6 percent Friday after the company delivered a strong earnings report but surprised investors with a major shake-up of its quarterly reporting structure and light guidance for the holiday quarter.

Shares opened around $209 after tanking as much as 7 percent in extended trading Thursday and briefly falling below its historic $1 trillion market cap. The losses push Apple into correction territory, more than 10 percent off its all-week high.

The company posted a huge jump in average selling price for its flagship iPhone Thursday, nudging the company to record revenue and earnings figures. But Apple said the company will stop reporting individual unit sales for the iPhone, iPad and Mac starting next quarter.

Top Wall Street analysts called the move a “tough pill to swallow” and said it could fuel “fears the company has something to hide.” Bank of America Merrill Lynch downgraded the stock citing increased risk.

Friday’s stock plunge is a surprising stumble for Apple, which many were expecting to weather an otherwise painful earnings season for the tech sector.

Apple was down 3 percent in October, fairing better than its FAANG stock peers. Facebook shed almost 8 percent in the same period; Alphabet lost almost 10 percent; Netflix slid 19.3 percent; and Amazon hemorrhaged 20 percent, making for its worst month since the 2008 financial crisis.