Apple's stock has been yo-yoing lately and is 35% off its high. What gives? What's next?

The longer term stock collapse (past three months) has been due to 1) the collective realization by Apple fans that the company is operating in the same weakening economy as everyone else, 2) the iPod growth cycle is over, and 3) the iPhone may not be quite the gangbuster sales engine every thought during the euphoric December quarter last year.

The gyrations over the past two weeks, meanwhile, have been caused by more disappointing iPod news and a growing skepticism about the iPhone's 2008 prospects.

On Monday, two analysts cut their Apple (AAPL) price targets. One of them, Banc of America analyst Scott Craig, also lowered his March quarter sales estimates for Apple's iPod (from 11 million to 10 million units) and iPhone (from 1.6 million to 1.2 million units). This followed a similar prediction by Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster, who said January iPod sales data from research firm NPD Group suggested Apple would sell between 9.5 million and 10.3 million iPods this quarter.