U.S. mobile e-commerce sales are expected to surge 74% to $59 billion in 2014 for the largest sellers, with Amazon.com and Apple accounting for over one-third of purchases made via mobile devices, according to an industry tracker. Internet Retailer said in its 2015 Mobile 500 report Tuesday that the No. 1-ranked Amazon.com (AMZN) and No. 2-ranked Apple (AAPL) command a 37% share of total Mobile 500 sales, which includes both U.S. and non-U.S.
Apple stock is a hair’s breadth away from its all-time high, thanks to a bullish report Tuesday from Morgan Stanley. Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty pounded the table for Apple (AAPL), saying investors should buy shares ahead of the company’s iPhone 6 and iWatch product cycles. The stock is attractive because of its low institutional ownership, increased cash return program, stronger and broader management team, increased acquisitions and R&D, stabilizing profit margins and higher contribution from services, she said. “Even after the recent move in the stock, the top 100 institutional owners of Apple (AAPL), shares hold a 2.3% position in their portfolios on average as compared to 4.5% at the prior peak in 2012,” Huberty said. “This is well below Apple’s S&P 500 weighting of 3.4%.” Apple CEO Tim Cook has bolstered the company’s management team in key positions to prepare for growth, she said. Cook has added well over…
The most anticipated smartwatch that isn’t Apple’s (AAPL) iWatch, Motorola’s Moto 360, is set to hit the market soon for $250, according to details inadvertently posted to Best Buy’s website. The Moto 360 features a round display like a traditional watch face and has a leather watch band. Previous smartwatches, such as Samsung’s Galaxy Gear, were criticized for their bulky, inelegant designs. The Moto 360 runs on the Google (GOOGL) Android Wear operating system. Details about the Moto 360, including its price, were accidentally leaked by Best Buy (BBY) on Sunday when it posted the product on its website, according to Droid Life. The retailer later removed the webpage. The Moto 360 will sport a 1.5-inch backlit LCD touchscreen display with Corning (GLW) Gorilla Glass protection. The wearable device weighs 2.1 ounces. By comparison, the Gear 2 Neo, a second-generation Samsung smartwatch, features a 1.63-inch square display and weighs 1.9…