The Street Vs. Investors: Who Got The Apple Narrative Right?

Apple Inc. AAPL is on track to end 2018 not far removed from its 52-week lows. Many Street research firms remain ardent bulls, with D.A. Davidson most recently projecting upside potential of 80 percent. Who's right on Apple: the Street or the market?

Technician: The Chart Sides With The Market

Apple's stock is down more than 30 percent from peak to trough, but the multiyear chart shows this has occurred before, Piper Jaffray chief market technician Craig Johnson said during a recent CNBC "Trading Nation" segment.

Apple's stock lost more than 30 percent in 2011 and 2016 before fully recovering all of the losses.

Investors should be encouraged, as the iPhone maker's stock rebounded around the $150 support level and recovered some of its losses from its 52-week low of $146.59, Johnson said. From a fundamental point of view, Apple's stock is trading at less than 12 times forward 2019 earnings and offers a dividend yield just shy of 2 percent.

"I don't think investors are going to get many opportunities to buy a high-quality stock like this on that kind of a correction-slash-setback," he said.

Apple stock will "probably get back" to its all-time high of $159.36 in 2019 or 2020, Johnson said. His colleague and Apple analyst Mike Olson has a $222 price target on Apple, which is "pretty close" to Apple's all-time highs.

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Photo courtesy of Apple.