With momentum investors gone, Apple is a now a “tremendous value” says analyst Scott Kessler

Because it so widely held and followed, the selloff in Apple has been one of the more painful ones for the general investment community, but that story is now overdone, says one analyst.

Scott Kessler, Head of Technology Research for S&P Capital IQ was on BNN’s “Business Day” this morning with host Frances Horodelski to talk about the ailing Cupertino-based tech giant.

Kessler says that while Apple has been silent on the new product front for essentially all of this year, the stock, which has fallen from highs of more than $700 last September to current lows under $400, is now a “tremendous value”.

While Kessler says there is probably no revolutionary product from Apple is the next couple quarters, its new product cycle has, in fact, just begun. He notes that at its recent WordWide Developers Conference the company announced updates to its desktop and mobile operating systems. He says this is important because these announcements typically presage updates to wireless devices such as the iPhone and iPad. He thinks those product refreshes will be announced no later than September, and that new product will be available in time for Christmas.

Horodelski asked Kessler if the market for smart phones and tablets has become commoditized, and if Apple will face margin pressure upon its return with new products. The S&P Capital IQ analyst says that is a major concern of many, but there are indications that new products from BlackBerry and Samsung are not, in fact, doing as well as expected. He says it is important not to underestimate Apple’s “stickiness”, pointing to the outstanding customer satisfaction ratings the company’s products still garner.

Kessler says that while the “hot money” of momentum players has all but left Apple, leaving the longer term value players, many are forgetting that Apple is still a very viable growth play.

You can watch the full clip at BNN here.

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