Apple Inc. shares dropped 12% at the start of trading Thursday, triggering a stock exchange circuit breaker designed to slow short sales of falling stocks.
Shares of the company, the largest by market capitalization on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, traded at $453.27, off $60.74 from $514.01 Wednesday.
Late Wednesday, Apple released results which included a disappointing sales forecast, leading a number of analysts to cut their share-price estimates.
Bank of Montreal cut its target price to $580 from $640, Société Générale cut its target to $560 from $800, Goldman Sachs cut its target to $660 from $760, Royal Bank of Canada cut its target to $600 from $725, and Jefferies cut its target to $500 from $800.
