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Apple Must Step Up In ‘Bots’ As Facebook, Microsoft Advance, Says UBS

Apple ( AAPL ) needs to jump into “bot” platform development or its app-based software ecosystem will be threatened, says a UBS report. Facebook ( FB ) recently introduced “chatbots” built into its messaging service while  Microsoft ( MSFT ) launched its “Bot Framework” software tools for developers, putting pressure on Apple to respond, says the UBS report. Alphabet ’s ( GOOGL ) Google, like Apple, has lagged amid a flurry of bot announcements. But Google plans a bigger push into artificial intelligence , its CEO recently said. A bot is software that automates tasks. Consumer applications for bots include buying movie tickets or making hotel reservations. Businesses are using bots to handle things such as customer service or scheduling meetings. Chatbots, meanwhile, are software programs that simulate conversation about a range of topics. The UBS report is based on a meeting with Bruce Wilcox, director of natural language strategy at Kore, a startup developing bots for enterprise platforms such as Salesforce.com ( CRM ). Apple has been moving into the enterprise market — large companies and government agencies — by partnering with IBM ( IBM ). According to Wilcox, bots will displace apps in many tasks if using them is made simple. “Do I think that Apple’s in trouble if it doesn’t do something in a bot’s world? Sure, because why would you want to download and install all sorts of apps from the App Store when you can get access to bots effectively through one app?,” Wilcox told UBS. “ iPhones have had a charisma of a better user experience,” he added. “Bots are going to be wiping out user interface distinctions. The App Store will sell fewer things. People will have less reason to buy an iPhone. So yes, Apple’s going to have to do something.” Apple may be able to use its Siri voice recognition technology along with artificial intelligence to catch up in bots, says the UBS report. Amazon.com ( AMZN ) is expected to forge ahead with its virtual assistant, called Alexa. “Apple’s Siri is a question/answer bot. You ask it a question, it gives you an answer. End of discussion. She finds the answer to questions but does not control the world. Bot platforms try to do both,” said Wilcox. “Alexa is sort of a bot platform. You can route your requests through her to some specific bot effectively. So it is a bot platform. Facebook is in a good position because they have a dominant messaging platform. Facebook has zillions of users. Developers have a strong incentive to get that user base available to themselves.”

Taiwan Semi, InvenSense Stumble Over Apple’s iPhone Shortfall

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing ( TSM ) stumbled into Apple ‘s ( AAPL ) iPhone shortfall early Tuesday when it reported Q1 sales that missed by $30 million. Those results came a day after InvenSense ( INVN ) posted its first-ever year-over-year sales fall and guided to a steeper dip in June. In early trading on the stock market today , InvenSense stock crashed 20%, and Taiwan Semiconductor’s U.S. shares were down 0.5%. The stocks have lost 16% and 6%, respectively, since Apple’s fiscal Q2 sales miss — its first in 13 years — on April 26. For the March quarter, TSM reported $6.14 billion in sales and 38 cents earnings per American depositary receipt ex items, down 13% and 21%, respectively, vs. the year-earlier quarter. Sales lagged the consensus view of eight analysts polled by Thomson Reuters for $6.17 billion, but earnings met the 38-cent model. Current-quarter sales guidance for $6.66 billion to $6.75 billion would be flat at the midpoint vs. the year-earlier quarter. TSM didn’t provide an earnings view, but analysts model 40 cents per ADR ex items. Last Monday, InvenSense reported $79.5 million in fiscal Q4 sales and 2 cents earnings per share ex items, down 20% and 83%, respectively, vs. the year-earlier quarter, but in line with the consensus of 13 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters. On a year-over-year basis, fiscal Q4 was the first time InvenSense’s sales have fallen after decelerating for five consecutive quarters. It was also InvenSense’s biggest-ever EPS topple. InvenSense wrapped fiscal 2016 with $418.4 million in sales and 49 cents EPS ex items, up a respective 12.5% and 7%. Sales missed the consensus for $420.9 million, but EPS beat the 47-cent model. For the current quarter, InvenSense expects sales to fall 44% at the midpoint of its range of $58 million to $62 million and, for the first time, a 5-cent to 7-cent per-share loss ex items, swinging from a 14-cent gain in the year-earlier quarter.

Allergan Q1 Mixed, But Stock Rises On Share Buyback, Teva Deal

Specialty-drug giant Allergan ( AGN ) reported a mixed first quarter, affirmed guidance and announced a massive share buyback Tuesday, lifting its battered stock. Allergan stock was already boosted 6% Monday after Teva Pharmaceutical Industries ( TEVA ) said in its Q1 report that its buyout of Allergan’s generics unit, Actavis, is on track to close next month after having been delayed by various regulatory issues. This would render moot the worries over generic-drug pricing that drove the stock to a two-year low on Friday, after it had already been hammered by the break-up of its merger with Pfizer ( PFE ). The stock was up another 5.5% in early trading on the stock market today as Allergan reported operating earnings of $3.04 a share, up 15% from the year-earlier quarter and beating analysts’ consensus by 4 cents, according to Thomson Reuters. Sales climbed 48% to $3.8 billion, about $150 million below Wall Street’s average estimate. Allergan affirmed full-year revenue guidance of $17 billion vs. $15.1 billion last year. All the above numbers exclude Actavis. The company said it will use part of the roughly $40 billion in proceeds from the Teva deal to buy back stock. It plans to buy $4 billion to $5 billion over the next four to six months, and said if conditions allow it will consider extending the program up to as much as $10 billion. Allergan stock, once a resident of the IBD 50, still holds an excellent EPS Rank of 97 and actually declined less than the group as a whole during the drug-stock sell-off between August and February. But the high-profile dissolution of the Pfizer deal in early April pushed the stock down to single-digit Relative Strength Ratings, leading to a mediocre Composite Rating of 40.