Apple stock slips even as KeyBanc notes February spending was above average
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Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares slipped fractionally in premarket trading on Friday even as investment firm KeyBanc Capital Markets said its Key First-Look Data showed February spending was above the three year average.
The research firm looked at the proprietary spending data of 1.8M credit and debit card customers and found spending on Apple (AAPL) transactions declined 11% month-over-month, better than the three-year average of a 13% decline. 
"We believe our data supports the view that AAPL's [year-over-year] revenue growth should at least be in line with guidance calling for similar trends as [the fiscal first-quarter]," analyst Brandon Nispel wrote in an investor note. 
Nispel added the February data was a continuation of the "better seasonal growth" seen in January and that spending patterns are normalizing, following Apple's (AAPL) supply chain constraints in 2022 due to China's COVID-related lockdowns.
China has since re-opened its economy and the company's main manufacturing partner, Foxconn, ended restraints in December.
"We continue to believe [Apple] is one of the best opportunities within our coverage given [Apple's] resilient product/ subscriber base, ability to grow key markets such as China and India, solid margin expansion potential and [Apple's] shareholder friendly capital allocation," Nispel added.
Earlier this week, investment analyst Gene Munster said Apple's (AAPL) stock is likely to be the safest tech stock over the next six months.