Credit Suisse initiates AAPL coverage on up and down day

AAPL shares got slapped silly before market open this morning after a JMP Securities analyst initiated a rare downgrade on AAPL stock yesterday. The downgrade was due to assumed problems with Apple's ability to manage the supply chain for its iOS devices in the wake of the disaster in Japan. But not soon after the AAPL sell-off, many other analysts came to Apple's defense, including Barclays Capital's Ben Reitzes.

Reitzes stated that the perceived effects of the troubles in Japan were overblown in relation to how Apple's supply chain would be affected. In a research note, Reitzes stated, "While still a fluid situation, we believe the comments made by QCOM [Qualcomm] may alleviate at least some concerns for Apple given uncertainty around the iPhone supply chain for both current and future products (QCOM chips are used in Verizon iPhone 4s and iPad 2s, and we believe QCOM will be a major supplier for the iPhone 5)."

"The comments made by QCOM" is referring to a statement by the company in which it said it foresees no significant effects on its ability to deliver products because of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. That statement, along with that fact that this morning Credit Suisse initiated coverage on shares of Apple with an outperform rating and a massive $500 price target, led APPL to regain some of its earlier losses and close at $334.64 a share.

Disclaimer: The author holds a position in AAPL. TUAW does not provide investment advice; consult an expert before buying or selling equities.