Apple: Cool yet…Ubiquitous?

Before saying anything else, I would like to emphasize the following: THE PURPOSE OF THIS POST IS NOT TO RECOMMEND BUYING, SELLING, OR SHORTING APPLE THE STOCK.

There are armies of analysts, consumer tech gurus, etc. who understand Apple the Company, its products, and its stock much better than I do. One would hope, therefore, that they’d do a better job of articulating an Apple investment thesis better than I could. So I won’t go there.

What I do somewhat better than the average joe is identify ironies, paradoxes, inconsistencies, and even contradictions big and small. Usually these observations lead nowhere. Occasionally, however, these observations give birth to investment ideas that seem absurd at the time of inception, and obvious later on.

There is a profound paradox that comes to mind every time I think about Apple: How does a company whose products are found anywhere and everywhere, nevertheless stay so ‘cool’ in the public’s/customers’ eyes? How did Apple quietly cruise past Microsoft, the artist formerly known as the “Evil Empire”, in revenue, market value, and even in earnings, yet is seen more as a Luke Skywalker, and not a Darth Vader?

I speculate that if you understand and ‘solve’ this mystery, you will understand the future trajectory of Apple the business and its stock better than the rest of us…