The Retail Number Not Revealed in The Quarterly Call

One big question remains regarding Apple's plans to weather the financial downturn: Will retail stores continue to open at the same pace?

Apple has plenty of cash on hand, and could easily move full speed ahead with store rollouts, and probably get some deals on rent as well. The downside though, could be for short-term investors. If the economy takes a few years to recover (however you define that), then Apple's strategy of continued store openings would pay off big a few years down the road. However, in the next 12-18 months, the stock price could be in for an even rougher ride. Analysts would be concerned about increasing operating expenses with, at least temporarily, lowered returns. And of course there's always the thought of Steve Jobs leaving Apple. Whether his health is fine or not, at some point, he'll be ready to take a reduced role in the company. He could keep going for another 40 years, or he could decide tomorrow he's had enough. Jobs seems to have been mentioning all the great people at Apple - an implication to remember the iPhones and Macs come out thanks to far more people than just him.

The situation isn't completely unlike Apple's initial retail rollout. After the U.S. financial decline following 9/11, Apple boldly moved forward with retail expansion. Doing the same now could put Apple in a position to reach a whole new market plateau in three to five years. That potential future payoff could come at the price of investor hand-wringing in the short-term.

TDL Live This week: (9/29-10/6)

In case you missed it last night, here's our weekly roundup of Apple news and rumors:

If You Own Apple Stock, Look Away

(First the usual disclaimer that we are not licensed brokers, and our commentary on Apple stock is provided for entertainment only.)

Now then, Run for the Hills! Apple is starting the trading day 134.76. It hasn't been that low, since, since, has it ever been that low? Oh wait, it was in the 130's back in March...

So after the toughest day for the market overall in seven years, for Apple to not even fall to its one-year low... I think AAPL investors might be getting off easy. And if you're not an investor, that looks like a pretty attractive price to become one.

Of course, the trading day is young, and by the end of the day, we may see some ugly numbers, not seen in quite some time.

Apple has another record quarter. Sell! Sell! Sell!

Apple does it again, showing a 31% increase in profit, year over year. And how does the market react? The stock fell more than $17 in after-market trading. I would challenge you to find any other computer or electronics company experiencing double digit growth consistentlt, year-over-year, every single quarter.

What would it take for Wall Street to treat this stock with a little respect? The stock's current value virtually ignores the iPhone as a revenue generator. Meanwhile companies in other sectors are rewarded for posting losses that weren't as bad as expected.

It just doesn't make any sense. We could go on for half an hour about this, and actually we did: