How refreshing to see the Masters of the Universe choking on Apple shares Friday after efforts to hold the stock aloft until the bell collapsed. The stock finished on the low of the day, presumably bound for a test of June’s watershed bottom at 129.04. Expect a tradeable bounce on the way down from the 136.06 Hidden Pivot target shown in the chart.

The stock’s vertical ascent from mid-June to mid-August never spread to the broad averages. That had been DaBoyz’ intention, and it appeared they might succeed when AAPL got within 3.7% of new record highs on August 17. Alas, sustaining altitude until hoards of other stocks caught up proved too challenging, and AAPL began to roll down like an aerobatic plane in a hammerhead stall,

Earlier, I described in detail how the stock’s canny sponsors levitated it without risking much. This occurred mostly via short-squeeze rallies in thin, overnight markets, and with gap-up openings that allowed instantaneous leaps of $2-$4 on zero cash outlays. This trick will not work nearly as well now because perceptions concerning the company’s prospects have darkened with the onset of recession in Europe, a key market. The U.S. consumer economy is close behind, and the one-two whammy is certain to depress sales of the pricey iPhone. Rick’s Picks will continue to track AAPL closely and trade it aggressively in both directions. Get AAPL right and you get the stock market right. We’ve been doing it with consistent precision, so stay tuned. _______ UPDATE (Oct 3, 6:30 p.m.): The algos and hubcap thieves who work the night shift must be tuned to Rick’s Picks, since they front-ran my 136.06 target by 34 cents. Ordinarily I would not assume they are on a target of mine like fleas, but in this case the pattern seemed obscure enough that we shouldn’t have had much company.  The subsequent short-squeeze was steep, but it suspiciously failed by a hair to impulse above Friday’s 143.10 high. That could happen tonight or tomorrow, with bullish implications for the short term, but we’ll move to the sidelines in any event.