Jim Cramer Reveals Why Apple (AAPL) Stock is Struggling

Core Viewpoint - Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has seen its shares decline by 8.3% year-to-date, yet Jim Cramer continues to defend the stock, emphasizing its potential in the upcoming earnings report and the strength of its Services business [2][3]. Group 1: Stock Performance and Analyst Ratings - Apple Inc.'s shares are down 8.3% year-to-date, indicating a muted performance [2]. - UBS maintains a Neutral rating on Apple with a price target of $280, citing potential benefits from iPhone strength, expecting December iPhone sell-through to be between 84.5 million to 85 million units, representing a 13% annual growth [2]. - Goldman Sachs has an Outperform rating with a price target of $330, highlighting strong consumer demand for the iPhone [2]. Group 2: Jim Cramer's Insights - Jim Cramer believes that owning Apple shares is preferable to trading them, linking the current share price weakness to cost control issues [2][3]. - Cramer perceives that Apple's stock struggles are due to market perceptions regarding margin pressures [3].