Apple Shakes Off Concerns About Becoming The Next BlackBerry

By | May 23, 2016

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Apple ( AAPL ) stock rose Monday as investors digested a positive iPhone 7 production report, along with a cautionary article that suggested Apple was at risk of becoming the next BlackBerry ( BBRY ). Apple stock was up 1.6%, near 97, in afternoon trading on the stock market today . Taiwan’s Economic Daily News reported Monday that Apple has ordered contract manufacturers to produce 72 million to 78 million iPhone 7 handsets this year, a record figure for a new iPhone and above analyst estimates of 65 million units. The iPhone 7 is expected to be released in September, with a slimmer design, faster processor and improved camera as compared to earlier iPhones. This 10th-generation iPhone might even sport a waterproof design for the first time. Apple Falling Behind In AI Meanwhile, influential tech blogger and Web developer Marco Arment on Saturday posted an article that argued Apple is falling behind Amazon.com ( AMZN ), Facebook ( FB ) and Alphabet ( GOOGL )-owned Google in artificial intelligence (AI), digital assistants and voice interfaces. He said Apple could miss the next big shift in computing, just as onetime cellphone giant BlackBerry missed the move to smartphones from email-centric feature phones. “Amazon, Facebook, and Google — especially Google — have all invested heavily in Big Data Web services and AI for many years, prioritizing them highly, iterating and advancing them constantly, accumulating relevant data, developing effective algorithms and attracting, developing and retaining tons of specialized talent,” Arment wrote. Arment says Apple is not putting the same emphasis on Big Data and AI as its rivals. “Becoming a major Big Data AI services company doesn’t happen completely in secret and suddenly get released to the world, completed, in a keynote,” Arment said. “It’s a massive undertaking, spanning many years, many people and a lot of noticeable interaction with the world. It’s easier to conceal the development of an entire car than a major presence in AI and services.” Analysts Keep Buy Ratings On Apple Stock Investors on Monday were more focused on the Economic Daily News article and a trio of reassuring analyst reports. Pacific Crest Securities analyst Andy Hargreaves on Sunday reiterated his overweight rating on Apple stock with a price target of 123. “We believe concerns about a potential lack of innovation in the iPhone 7 underestimate the extraordinary growth in the user base over the past two years, which is likely to drive increased replacement volume and overall iPhone unit growth in fiscal 2017, almost regardless of the hardware,” Hargreaves said. BMO Capital Markets analyst Tim Long also is positive on Apple because of the potential for iPhone users to upgrade with the iPhone 7 cycle. “What we find most interesting is that we believe we are entering the iPhone 7 cycle with the highest percentage of phones in the installed base at least two years old, at about 26% (compared to 23% for iPhone 6),” Long said. “This translates to about 120 million phones. As a result, we believe the device will drive an improved replacement rate, even if it has lackluster features.” Also, the huge growth in used iPhone sales will increase the installed base of iPhone users and boost services revenue, Long said. He reiterated his outperform rating on Apple stock, with a price target of 117. Nomura analyst Jeffrey Kvaal maintained his buy rating on Apple with a price target of 120. He noted the success of Apple’s recent iPhone SE launch but cautioned that the lower-cost smartphone could cannibalize sales of iPhone 6S handsets. Apple chip suppliers Broadcom ( AVGO ), Skyworks Solutions ( SWKS ), Qorvo ( QRVO ) and NXP Semiconductors ( NXPI ) were up Monday intraday. Broadcom climbed 1.5%, Skyworks 2.4%, Qorvo 2.9% and NXP Semi 1.1%. RELATED: Apple Has Largest Cash Stockpile, Twice That Of Microsoft’s Apple Faces ‘Existential Threat’ From Messenger Bots . Scalper1 News

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