Analyst: Apple Buying A Luxury Car Company Is A Bad Move

According to the Financial Times, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) approached McLaren Technology Group, the British-based supercar engineer and Formula One team owner, over a potential acquisition.

The Financial Times, citing "three people briefed on the negotiations," reported that Apple approached the carmaker months ago and serves as the latest sign that Apple is working on a self-driving electric vehicle.

The publication did, however, note that talks could have focused on a strategic investment rather than a full takeover.

The Financial Times noted that McLaren's expertise "ranges from automotive engineering and on-board computer systems to novel chassis materials such as carbon fibre and aluminium."

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The publication added that an acquisition of McLaren "could accelerate Apple's secretive automotive project."

Of note, Wednesday's report doesn't mark the first time that Apple may be showing interest in F1 racing. Specifically, a notable F1 blogger named Joe Saward suggested that Apple may be interested in acquiring a major stake in F1 so that it can "get people thinking about Apple in relation to cars."

However, F1 was sold to Liberty Media Group (NASDAQ: LMCA) for $8.5 billion, so perhaps Apple's interest has shifted to one of the more notable automakers in the sport.

If this is the case, analysts at Pacific Crest are not going to be particularly pleased.

"We do not [emphasis omitted] want them to buy a car company," the analysts wrote in their initial thought report on the rumor.

The analysts added that if Apple were to just acquire the technology part of McLaren, then it would be buying an "industry leader" with "no impact" to its "massive" overseas cash hoard.

The analysts also opined that Apple should "get out of the auto biz" altogether along with the more than one thousand employees working on a car.

"If [emphasis omitted] they buy the whole McLaren company we would see it as a negative," the analysts concluded.

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