Source: Zhitong Finance "Since 1950, the S&P 500 index has risen more than 10% 21 times as of the end of May. In about 90% of these cases, the S&P 500 index rose for the rest of the year. There were only two instances of declines for the rest of the year, in 1987 (-13%) and 1986 (-0.1%)." With the rebound of the stock market, the old adage "Sell in May and Go Away" seems to have been a bad advice once again. Last month, the S&P 500 index rose 4.8%, the best May performance since 2009. The NASDAQ 100 index rose nearly 6.2%, and the NASDAQ Composite Index rose 6.9%. Goldman Sachs FICC & Equities Trading Division said: "History doesn't really support this saying. Don't sell, leave the market (go on vacation), and enjoy the good times." The rising trend is still to be continued? If history is any guide, it may indicate that the rise of the stock market is not over yet. Looking ahead to the rest of 2024, Scott Rubner, Managing Director of the Goldman Sachs Global Markets Division and tactical expert, pointed out the following historical background for investors. Rubner stated that the S&P 500 index has risen 10.7% year-to-date, and since 1950, the S&P 500 index has risen more than 10% 21 times as of the end of May. In about 90% of these cases, the S&P 500 index rose for the rest of the year. There were only two instances of declines for the rest of the year, in 1987 (-13%) and 1986 (-0.1%). "Since 1950, the median return of the last 7 months of each year (June 1 to December 31) is 5.4%. In the aforementioned 21 cases, the average performance of the last 7 months increased to 8.1%." Rubner added. Rubner also pointed out that the NASDAQ index has risen for 16 consecutive Julys, with an average return of about 4.64%.
Author: Rousseau

Wedbush Securities, a well-known Wall Street investment institution that has been bullish on technology stocks for a long time, insists that despite some relatively negative concerns, the initial sales of the iPhone 16 series in the first week seem to be very optimistic for the performance of Apple. $Apple (AAPL.US)$ And indicates that the first-week sales data of the new generation iPhone is the "beginning" of a new round of Apple stock price rise.

Wedbush analyst Dan Ives maintains an 'outperform' rating on Apple's stocks as well as a 12-month target price of up to $300.

"With the launch of the iPhone 16 series on the weekend, we believe apple will see a 'very strong demand beginning' in this crucial smart phone upgrade cycle." Dan Ives' Wedbush analysis team stated in an investor report.

"Although the apple intelligence feature will be released in stages in the coming months, we believe that unit sales growth of the iPhone 16 series will reach high single digits from the sales quarter beginning in December, and may reach double-digit growth."

According to well-known apple insider columnist Mark Gurman from Bloomberg, based on the early buzz on the release date, the iPhone 16 series 'is likely to become a popular apple product line'. Gurman is globally renowned for accurately revealing details of iPhone product updates well in advance.

Ives' team also added that with artificial intelligence features set to be fully introduced, as well as camera upgrades and extended battery life as part of the iPhone 16 series refresh, the upgrade cycle for iPhone 16 products in 2024 after its initial release may increase substantially to 90 million units, an expected increase of 8 to 10 million units compared to the iPhone 15 series.

The Eves team stated: "Based on our research and forecasts, within the past four years of statistical data, out of approximately 1.5 billion iPhone units, around 0.3 billion units have not been upgraded yet. This provides an excellent historical opportunity for Apple's iPhone upgrade cycle, making the iPhone 16 series expected to be the beginning of a consumption electronics super upgrade cycle driven by AI technology that we have seen." Eves team added that for the entire 2025 fiscal year, Apple is expected to sell over 0.24 billion iPhone units, "as this AI-driven upgrade cycle is having a strong impact."

Prior to the release of the research report reaffirming Apple's target stock price and the belief that first-week sales are the "optimistic start" for Apple's stock price, the Wedbush Securities analysis team has repeatedly stated that more and more market research evidence indicates that the next generation of Apple smartphones (the iPhone 16 series) could bring to Apple product fans and Apple stock fans the long-awaited "growth revival" and a new round of "super upgrade cycle."

Apple's total market cap is currently as high as $3.47 trillion, firmly holding the title of "the world's largest market cap listed company". Other Wall Street institutions generally bullish on Apple's stock price trend in the next 12 months, with morgan stanley giving a target price of $273 and reiterating a "shareholding" rating. Another Wall Street institution, Citigroup, even categorizes Apple as its "preferred stock" for AI-related stocks before 2025, with a target price of $255; Apple currently ranks ahead of AI infrastructure leaders Nvida and Arista Networks in Citigroup's AI stock list.

Tipranks shows that Wall Street analysts have an average target price for Apple as high as $249.83, indicating nearly 10% upward potential in the eyes of Wall Street analysts for the "market cap giant" Apple with a market cap of $3 trillion.

Editor/Jeffy