AAPL Should I Buy

BUY for a beginner long-term investor right now. Apple is heading into earnings (Jan 29 after-hours) with generally bullish sell-side positioning, strong recent quarter growth, and options sentiment skewed toward calls (put-call ratios ~0.7). Technically, the stock is holding above the key pivot (~253) and is pressing into first resistance (~260); momentum is not overheated (RSI ~61) and MACD is improving (negative but contracting). Despite near-term risks (memory cost pressure, slower App Store growth, and some negative AI-related headlines), the overall setup favors owning AAPL for long-term exposure without waiting for a perfect entry. Intellectia Proprietary Trading Signals - [AI Stock Picker](module://ai_stock_pick): No signal on given stock today. - [SwingMax](module://swingmax): No signal on given stock today.

Pre-market ~$258.7 (slightly green). Trend is mildly constructive but not a breakout: RSI_6 ~60.95 (neutral-to-bullish), MACD histogram -0.106 (still below zero but improving/contracting), and moving averages are converging (transition phase rather than a strong trend). Key levels: Pivot 253.10 (important support/line in the sand), Support S1 246.02, Resistance R1 260.17 then R2 264.55. With price near R1, upside continuation is plausible if earnings confirms demand; downside risk increases if it loses the 253 pivot after earnings.