Tepper Takes Bearish Stance on Apple, Adds to Tech Stocks

Billionaire investor David Tepper has taken a bearish stance on Apple (AAPL) by placing put options, which are essentially bets against the company's stock price. According to Appaloosa's 13F filing, Tepper initiated new put positions referencing 835,000 underlying Apple shares and 25,000 underlying Berkshire Class B shares.

The notional value of these positions is significant, but it's essential to note that options exposure is often overstated on 13-Fs due to the lack of disclosed strike prices, expirations, and premiums paid. Tepper's Apple put was his largest addition last quarter in notional terms, but this doesn't necessarily reflect his conviction in the trade.

Tepper's views on Apple are likely influenced by the company's fundamentals, particularly its high price-to-earnings ratio of 35. Apple's Q3 FY26 earnings report was flattered by non-recurring items, and its gross margin included roughly 2 percentage points from tariff refunds. Cook himself called memory pricing 'a 100-year flood... with exponential increases', which could have a significant impact on Apple's stock price.

Tepper's book stayed constructive elsewhere, with him adding to Amazon, TSMC, NVIDIA, Meta, and Alphabet, as well as opening new positions in CoreWeave, Broadcom, Boeing, and SpaceX. This suggests that he is targeting specific sectors or companies rather than making a broad bearish market conviction.