Apple Inc. has officially entered the record books—though not in the way investors would prefer. Shares of the iPhone maker fell again on Monday, extending the company's losing streak to nine consecutive trading sessions, the longest such decline since 1991.

The historic slide has erased more than 8% from Apple's market capitalization since the downturn began in early January, wiping out roughly $280 billion in shareholder value. Yet analysts remain divided on whether this represents a buying opportunity or a warning sign of deeper challenges ahead.

Why Apple Can't Catch a Break

The confluence of factors weighing on Apple shares reflects broader anxieties about the company's positioning in an AI-dominated landscape:

  • AI Perception Gap: While Apple has unveiled its own artificial intelligence initiatives, including Apple Intelligence features, investors perceive the company as playing catch-up to rivals like Alphabet and Microsoft. Google's recent deal to power Siri with Gemini technology has paradoxically reinforced concerns that Apple lacks competitive in-house AI capabilities.
  • Component Cost Pressures: The insatiable demand for memory chips from AI data centers has created shortages that are now rippling through consumer electronics supply chains. Apple, as the world's largest smartphone manufacturer, faces meaningful margin pressure from elevated component costs.
  • 2025 Underperformance: Apple's 9% gain in 2025 significantly trailed the S&P 500's 16% advance, marking the first time since 2022 that shares lagged the broader market. This underperformance has prompted portfolio managers to question their Apple allocations.

Historical Context Matters

The last time Apple endured such an extended decline, the company was a fraction of its current size, trading under a different corporate structure before Steve Jobs's return and the transformative launches of the iPod, iPhone, and iPad.

Since 1991, Apple has experienced several eight-day losing streaks—in 2025, 2022, 2016, and 1998—but none extended to nine sessions until now. The rarity of such events underscores both the magnitude of current selling pressure and Apple's historically consistent ability to find buying support.

"Apple's brand remains unmatched, but the stock is pricing in real concerns about the company's AI strategy and margin trajectory. The nine-day streak tells you institutional investors are repositioning, not panicking."

— Evercore ISI analyst, January 2026

Evercore Remains Bullish Despite the Pain

Not everyone is heading for the exits. Evercore ISI reiterated its Outperform rating on Apple shares, arguing that the selloff has created an attractive entry point for long-term investors. The firm points to Apple's services revenue growth, its installed base of over 2 billion active devices, and the potential for AI features to drive iPhone upgrade cycles later in 2026.

Apple led the global smartphone market in 2025 with a 20% share, according to IDC data—a position of strength that belies the stock's recent weakness. The company's $100 billion-plus annual services revenue stream provides earnings stability that few hardware manufacturers can match.

What Comes Next

Technical analysts note that Apple shares are approaching oversold territory, which historically has preceded rebounds. The stock's 14-day relative strength index (RSI) has fallen below 30, a level that often attracts value-oriented buyers.

For Apple to break its losing streak, investors will likely need reassurance on two fronts: a clearer path to AI leadership and evidence that component cost pressures are manageable. The company's next major catalyst arrives with January earnings, where CEO Tim Cook will have an opportunity to address both concerns directly.

Until then, Apple shareholders find themselves in unfamiliar territory—watching a stock that has defined the modern technology era struggle to find its footing in an industry it once dominated without question.