On the first trading day of the new year, Apple's stock price plummeted by 4%, reaching a seven week low, with the market value evaporating over $100 billion. And just last month, Apple's closing market value once again stood above $3 trillion, with the company's stock price increasing by about 50% over the past year. The sharp drop in Apple's stock price was due to brokerage firm Barclays Bank lowering the company's stock rating and target pricing on the same day. Barclays Bank downgraded Apple's stock rating from "neutral" to "underweight" on Tuesday and lowered its target price for the next 12 months to $160. Prior to this, few securities firms had given Apple's stock a bearish rating.