CEO Health Rumor Pressures Apple’s Stock
Rumors that Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs’ health was in decline sent shares of the company’s stock down as much as 2 percent on Tuesday.
The rumor was reported by technology Web site Gizmodo, which quoted a "solid source" as saying Jobs’ "rapidly declining" health was the reason he cancelled a keynote speech at next week’s MacWorld industry conference. The Gizmodo post was entitled "rumor".Â
An Apple spokesman declined to comment on the rumor, but said, "if ever Steve or the board of directors decided that he was no longer capable of doing his job as CEO of Apple, I’m sure they will let you know."
Shares of Apple Inc. had been trading up 1.5 percent at $87.92 prior to a sharp decline following the rumor. The stock recovered later in the day, trading down nearly half a percent at $86.15 by mid-afternoon.
"The main reason why Apple shares have sold off midday is that a website reported that Steve Jobs health is getting worse, citing an unidentified source," William Lefkowitz, an options strategist at vFinance Investments, told Reuters.
"However, this is not the first time Steve Jobs health has come into question. In the past, this has created large fluctuations in Apple stock."
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