Apple Recap: Samsung’s Competition, Stock Fundamentals, and a Product Ban

One analyst noted recently in a Bloomberg article that “clearly, there is no other Steve Jobs, not even at Apple these days.” Envisioneering Group analyst Richard Doherty meant to critique both Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and its ever-strengthening competitor Samsung (SSNLF.PK) for what he sees as a preoccupation with a “product-focused design environment,” as he told the publication, indicating both companies are failing to do what Steve Jobs did: define entire product categories with the iPhone and iPad. Concerns that Apple doesn’t have “the next great thing” in its pipeline is one of the overriding criticisms thrown about by analysts and regular investors alike. Yet despite this negative buzz, Apple ended Thursday up $4.15, or 0.97 percent, at $432.50. Here’s a cheat sheet to today’s top Apple stories:

Has Apple Been Crushing Samsung?

Apple may appear to be on the defensive at the moment, but the company has “crushed” Samsung shares over the last decade, Bespoke Investment Group said in a report on Thursday, according to Barron’s. The firm charted the performance of the two companies for 10-year, three-year, and one-year time frames and found that the iPhone maker had performed phenomenally better than its South Korean rival for years. According to the report, Apple’s shares are up 5,749 percent since 2003, while Samsung’s shares are up 373 percent. In addition, Apple had outperformed Samsung since 2009, that is, the current bull market, by 421 percent to 195 percent. However, in the last year Samsung was up 22 percent against a 27 percent decline for Apple… (Read more.)