Oppenheimer lifts embargo

Oppenheimer & Co. has at last lifted a self-imposed ban on analyzing Apple stocks, Fortune writes. In December, Oppenheimer analyst Yair Reiner announced that he would refuse to issue a price target for Apple stock until the company answered questions about why Apple CEO Steve Jobs was pulling out of Macworld. Specifically, Reiner indicated, the concern was that it was a sign of Jobs' failing health, which would put Apple's future in jeopardy.

Jobs recently published an open letter however, at last disclosing the hormonal imbalance behind his severe weight loss during 2008. Reiner in turn has published his first analysis in three weeks, issuing an "outperform" rating with a 12- to 18-month price target of $135 per share. The analyst remains critical though, noting that the specific illness has not been pinned down, and that a "simple" remedy does not indicate a less-than-serious problem.

Jobs and Apple are in fact trying to balance the former's right to privacy, says Reiner, with its official responsibilities, which dictate that the company disclose any risks to its profits. It has also bought itself a temporary reprieve from scrutiny, as a "spring" recovery timeframe may give Apple as much as six months before it has to state how Jobs is doing. He comments that it is still unclear if Jobs is actually handling all of his normal duties, or whether a particular incident triggered his decision to focus on recovery.

by MacNN Staff