FORTUNE — With Apple’s (AAPL) 2012 Q3 set to close on Saturday, analysts are making some last-minute adjustments. Two caught our eye because they moved in opposite directions to nearly the same place.
- Pacific Crest’s Andy Hargreaves on Friday raised his 12-month price target to $690 from $630 on the strength of what he estimates will be strong sales of the iPad mini — a product that, as far as we know, doesn’t exist
- J.P. Morgan’s Mark Moskowitz lowered his estimates on all 18 stocks in his hardware list, including Apple, in a note to clients entitled “Not Running for the Hills, but We Are Preparing for Tougher Times.” His new target for Apple is $695, down 2.8% from his previous target, set in March, of $715.
Moskowitz’s list three reasons for his wholesale revisions: (I quote)
1) slowing IT spending patterns in EMEA [Europe, the Middle East and Africa] and U.S. Federal,
2) uncertain growth dynamics in China due to the absence of incremental economic stimulus activity in the region,
3) currency pressures as a result of a stronger U.S. dollar.
He hasn’t given up on Apple, however. It remains one of J.P. Morgan’s “Big Four in tougher times,” along with EMC Corp. (EMC), IBM (IBM) and NetApp (NTAP).
