Apple Heading Toward $200?: McLean

What Could Send Apple Below $200: McLean

Apple's stock price could have farther to fall, says journalist Bethany McLean.

Apple stock could have farther to fall, setting up less as a bargain and more of a classic value trap, Vanity Fair contributing editor Bethany McLean said Wednesday on CNBC.

"I think psychology is a really powerful thing, and it's human nature to believe that because something was once worth $700 a share, there's a reason it should be there again," she said.

McLean said there was an argument that Apple's normalized earnings over the past couple of years weren't as high as widely believed, "and Apple's true level of earnings is actually much lower, making it more expensive stock than it might appear by P/E measure."

On "Fast Money," McLean, who correctly predicted the fall of Enron, said that "Apple skeptics" had thrown around a stock price around $200.

"Now, the huge amount of cash Apple has provides a floor under the stock, and tax-adjusted it's about $111 a share right now, so you'd say it's hard to believe it's going to go to that level until they show signs of starting to burn through cash, if they do," she said.

"There's an argument that technology companies, once innovation dries up, they do start to burn through cash hoard, so you'd have to see signs of that before the stock goes below $200."

Trader disclosure: On Feb. 6, 2013, the following stocks and commodities mentioned or intended to be mentioned on CNBC's "Fast Money" were owned by the "Fast Money" traders: Guy Adami is long C; Guy Adami is long GS; Guy Adami is long INTC; Guy Adami is long AGU; Guy Adami is long MSFT; Guy Adami is long NUE; Guy Adami is long BTU; Steve Grasso is long AAPL; Steve Grasso is long AMZN; Steve Grasso is long ASTM; Steve Grasso is long BA; Steve Grasso is long GOOG; Steve Grasso is long GDX; Steve Grasso is long LF; Steve Grasso is long LNG; Steve Grasso is long MHY; Steve Grasso is long P; Steve Grasso is long PXD; Steve Grasso is long NVIV; Steve Grasso is long PFE; Steve Grasso is long S; Steve Grasso is funds long HPQ; ; Steve Grasso is funds long ZNGA; Steve Grasso is funds long AAPL; Steve Grasso is funds long JPM; Karen Finerman is long AAPL; Karen Finerman is long AAPL PUTS; Karen Finerman is long BAC; Karen Finerman is long C; Karen Finerman is long JPM; Karen Finerman is long WMT; Karen Finerman is long TGT; Karen Finerman is long MSFT; Karen Finerman is long GOOG; Karen Finerman is short JCP; Karen Finerman is long M; Karen Finerman is long FNP; Karen Finerman is short IWM; Karen Finerman is short SPY; Tim Seymour is long AAPL; Tim Seymour is long BAC; Tim Seymour is long CSCO.