Fate dependent on Cook, corporate culture

Early analyst opinion is maintaining a generally favorable view of Apple's prospects in the wake of Steve Jobs' death. "It is the culture of innovation, thinking different, risk taking, and execution that will live on," says Sterne Agee's Shaw Wu. "In our view, the challenge and opportunity for AAPL is to maintain this culture. The good news is that Steve has put a strong team in place to execute with Tim Cook, Jonathan Ive, Eddy Cue, Scott Forstall, Phil Schiller, Peter Oppenheimer, Bob Mansfield, to name a few."

In terms of actually investing in Apple shares, Wu says that Sterne Agee are "buyers on potential weakness" because the the company has "transformed itself into one of the key platforms of the future with iCloud and the App Store poised to benefit in the upcoming decade from a company that produced hot products." He warns though that the stock may stay "volatile" until investors have confidence in Apple's new CEO, Tim Cook.

Canaccord Genuity's Michael Walkley has adopted a similar stance. "While Mr. Jobs’ passion, creativity, and keen eye for consumer preference will be missed, we believe Jobs and Apple’s executive team have built an unparalleled talent base and corporate culture that sets the table for future success and innovation. We continue to anticipate strong earnings growth for Apple over the next several years with very strong demand and relatively low global market penetration for iPhone, iPad and Mac products," he writes. "We believe Tim Cook is well qualified for his new role as CEO and has at his disposal a deep and talented executive team in the areas of supply chain management, hardware/software design and product marketing. We view Apple’s latest product launches of iPhone 4S, iCloud, and iOS 5 as examples of the innovative products we expect Apple to continue to bring to market despite the leadership change."

These views are not universal, however. "He's irreplaceable," says Charlton Media Group's Tim Charlton. "There's nobody with his vision."

Frost & Sullivan's Nitin Bhat suggests that the real danger will take a while to manifest. "In the short term, the impact is not likely to be that much, as the company already has in place plans for technology and product development," he notes. "But in the medium to long term, Jobs' absence may hurt Apple." Product development, he comments, is not just about technology, but also getting "the look and feel and the timing of its launch right," something which Jobs is said to have had a rare talent for.

By Electronista Staff