What happened
Shares of Qorvo Inc. (QRVO 0.80%) dropped 13% in December, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence, as investors in the semiconductor specialist worried over reports of waning iPhone X sales.
More specifically, Qorvo's decline began in earnest early last month when supply chain sources speaking to DIGITIMES suggested that component demand for Apple's (AAPL 0.64%) iPhone X was weakening.
IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES.
So what
Any weakness for Cupertino's latest products is naturally viewed as an ominous sign for companies like Qorvo, which generates around 35% of its revenue by supplying chips to Apple. And it likely didn't help that Wall Street's sentiment for Qorvo had largely soured in November, when the company offered weaker-than-expected guidance along with its latest quarterly results.
Now what
To be fair, the DIGITIMES report also speculated that if iPhone X sales were indeed waning, it could have been due to consumers delaying purchase plans amid rumors that Apple may soon release a newer six-inch iPhone with a design similar to the iPhone X. And if Qorvo were to score design wins in that new phone, it would mean investors' more focused worries over the iPhone X were a moot point.
Sure enough, late last month analysts at J.P. Morgan argued that wireless chipmakers as a whole had been hit too hard. And though the firm further singled out Qorvo as its top pick in the group, Qorvo stock has only partially recouped its losses since.
Barring a financial update between now and its next quarterly report in early February, Qorvo investors will need to wait until then for more color on whether last month's concerns held merit. Until that happens, however, I suspect the stock will remain under pressure.
