(MarketWatch) CNBC’s Jim Cramer isn’t one of those media types who gets overly excited about a single stock, unless you count the frenetic gesticulating of his on-air persona, prone to shouting “booyah” and aggressively depressing sound-effects buttons with the gusto of someone playing Whac-A-Mole.
On Monday, however, a relatively more subdued version of Cramer, pivoting from questions about the Federal Reserve and its widely expected interest-rate cut this Wednesday, offered viewers the skinny on what he believes Apple’s coming report could mean for the broader stock market:
"I know it’s a big week for earnings, but I’m really focused on Apple. There is a lot of thought that Apple — people are so bearish on it — that it can rally on a subpar number." - Jim Cramer
He also said the closely watched results, even if disappointing, could keep the broader stock market heading higher.
“That’s been the theme: When you have this better-than-feared, the stocks go higher,” he said. “It’s all about better-than-feared. People really feared this earnings period…It turns out that that fear was not justified.”
Apple will report its results after the stock market closes on Tuesday, with Wall Street forecasts calling for basically flat sales from a year ago. Consensus figures currently model a substantial sales drop for the September quarter, and a decline of more than $9 billion, or 3%, for the full fiscal year.
At last check, shares of Apple were up 1.2% at $210.16 and have now rallied more than 30% since the beginning of the year.
