Apple is set to announce its earnings soon, and Wedbush’s Daniel Ives is predicting a solid performance due to the steady demand for iPhones. Ives believes that Apple’s iPhone revenue will meet expectations, with Chinese consumers boosting sales. Analysts estimate that Apple will report $92.91 billion in revenue for the March quarter, with $48.8 billion coming from iPhone sales. Ives notes that higher average selling prices and upgrades to the iPhone Pro 14 may lead to higher iPhone sales. Wedbush has reiterated its Outperform rating and $205 target price for Apple stock, while the company’s shares currently sit at $169.09, down 0.4%.
Tech investors were uplifted by Microsoft (MSFT) and Google-parent Alphabet’s (GOOGL) earnings beats last week. However, Amazon.com’s (AMZN) warning about a slowdown in cloud-computing growth and cautious consumer spending cast a shadow over the industry’s mood. The market is now waiting for Apple’s take on global consumer spending, which is expected to be a crucial factor. According to Wedbush, the iPhone’s average selling price is steadily climbing towards the $900-$925 range, and Apple is gaining a bigger market share in China while maintaining a steady position in the US and Europe. However, Ives predicts that Apple will adopt a conservative approach towards the current quarter, especially with the potential launch of the iPhone 15 later this year. “As we approach the highly anticipated iPhone 15 launch in September, we anticipate Apple to downplay the current quarter’s prospects and provide relatively conservative guidance for June,” Ives commented.
Other analysts, including those at Bank of America, have also predicted that Apple may provide more negative guidance for the June quarter. Bank of America’s analysts anticipate that Apple’s fiscal third quarter will see a 1% decrease in revenue compared to the previous year, resulting in quarterly revenue of $81.7 billion – below Wall Street consensus expectations of $84.4 billion. Despite this prediction, Bank of America has increased its target price for Apple stock from $168 to $173, while maintaining a Neutral rating. The change in target price is attributed to a higher market multiple that is being assigned to the shares of the iPhone maker.
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