Ives表示：“我们认为，苹果正在进入一个由人工智能驱动的多年iPhone升级周期，这一周期仍被华尔街低估了。罗马不是一天建成的，苹果的人工智能战略也不是一天建成的，但苹果智能战略的种子正在形成，并将在未来几年改变苹果的消费者增长叙事。”Source: Zhithon Finance
After Wall Street's confidence in the continuous rise of Apple's stock price strengthened, Apple reached a historic high during trading.
Wedbush Analyst Dan Ives maintained an 'Outperform' rating for $Apple (AAPL.US)$ and raised the target price from $300 to $325, a new high on Wall Street. Ives predicts that this technology giant will enter a 'Golden Growth Era' in 2025. Affected by this news, Apple's stock price reached a historic high during trading on Thursday.
Ives stated, "We believe that Apple is entering a multi-year iPhone upgrade cycle driven by AI, which is still underestimated by Wall Street. Rome wasn't built in a day, and Apple's AI Global Strategy hasn't been built in a day either, but the seeds of Apple's intelligent strategy are being formed and will change Apple's Consumer growth narrative in the coming years."
Ives believes that a range of AI applications currently under development will accelerate the growth of Apple's service revenue and catalyze iPhone upgrades within the next 12 to 18 months.
Meanwhile, the research firm BTIG urged investors to maintain caution regarding Apple Stocks on Thursday.
BTIG Analyst Jonathan Krinsky pointed out that Apple's stock price had increased by 2% or more for five consecutive weeks last week. Given this upward momentum, a one-month forward return is quite unfavorable for the company.
Krinsky stated, "As Apple again becomes the world's most valuable company, with a Market Cap approaching 4 trillion dollars, we are cautious about the stock price performance in January next year."
Apple's stock price reached $260 during Thursday morning trading, setting a new intraday high, before slightly giving back some gains. The stock ultimately closed up 0.3% at $259, marking a record closing price.
Apple has had a tough start to 2024, with sluggish iPhone sales, intensified competition in the China market, and antitrust scrutiny putting pressure on the stock. Early data on the iPhone 16 series did not boost Wall Street's confidence, leading investment firm Jefferies Financial to rare downgrade Apple’s stock rating.
Other Analysts, including Ives, remain bullish on Apple stock, as more optimistic iPhone shipment data has instilled confidence in Apple's AI strategy. Apple’s fourth-quarter earnings report released in early November showed iPhone sales exceeded expectations, although overall performance fell short.
As Apple released the new MacBook Pro series and added AI features to iPhone, iPad, and macOS in mid-December, Apple’s stock began to climb to new highs in early November. Over the past month, Apple's performance has outperformed several of the so-called seven giants. During this period, Apple’s stock rose by over 11%, Meta by 6.7%, Microsoft by 4.4%, and NVIDIA by 1%.
However, macroeconomic uncertainties may adversely affect Apple. Tariffs imposed by Trump on China could impact the pricing of Apple products assembled in China, with the worst-case scenario being an increase in cost of $256 per iPhone. The Federal Reserve's potential interest rate cuts in 2025 may be lower than expected, which has also sparked concerns about persistently high rates and inflation, undermining consumer confidence.
编辑/jayden