- Apple (AAPL +0.4%) is trading slightly higher on an ugly day for tech. Shares rallied to $500 earlier in the week, thanks in large part to Carl Icahn.
- RBC's Amit Daryanani has hiked his PT to $525 from $475, and (unlike UBS) is on board with Icahn's call for an even bigger buyback. He thinks raising another $55B in debt for buybacks could boost FY14 EPS by $4, and that increasing leverage to a large-cap norm of 1.8x would allow Apple to repurchase 18% of its float.
- Earlier: China Mobile chairman optimistic about iPhone deal