How Apple Stock Exposes the Limits of the Classic CAPM

This article introduces an asymmetric version of the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) that differentiates between risks faced by long and short investors. Unlike the traditional, symmetric CAPM, this model recognizes that falling prices drive risk for long positions, while rising prices pose risk for short sellers. Using Apple stock as a case study, the findings reveal that Apple is riskier than the market only for short sellers—while long investors face less volatility. The asymmetric CAPM thus provides a more realistic, position-dependent measure of market risk with meaningful implications for hedging and expected returns.