Apple's Summer of Downgrades Continues with Jefferies' Latest Hit

Apple is facing increasing challenges as it prepares for a leadership transition under new CEO John Ternus. Despite being one of the most valuable companies in the world, Apple's growth has slowed down and it's struggling to counter surging memory prices.

The latest hit came from investment firm Jefferies, which downgraded Apple's stock from 'hold' to 'underperform', equivalent to a 'sell' rating. The analysts cut their price target from $285.56 to $263.66 after discovering that Apple had canceled a rumored all-glass iPhone expected to launch next year.

This move shows that introducing new form factors in the iPhone is more difficult than expected, according to Jefferies analysts. Several other Wall Street firms have also downgraded their ratings for Apple, with at least six firms now having posted 'sell' or equivalent ratings, matching a 2012 high.