On Wednesday Oct 4th, Key Banc Capital Markets (Rank#19)<\/a> analyst Brandon Nispel issued a research report,\u00a0 downgrading Apple’s<\/a> stock rating from “Overweight” to “Sector Weight.” Nispel had previously set a 12-month target price of $200 per share for Apple’s stock, but there has been no update to this target following the rating downgrade.<\/p>\n Nispel has expressed concerns about Apple’s valuation, stating that it has become stretched when compared to historical rates, especially in relation to the Nasdaq. Despite having a mature growth profile, Apple is trading at peak multiples. Nispel suggests that Apple needs to reaccelerate its sales growth to justify its current earnings and free-cash-flow multiples to enterprise value. Apple has also experienced a decline in sales on a year-over-year basis for three consecutive quarters.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n