MondayOnlinepokersitesrealmoneyApple shares closed up 2% after a well-known analyst at Bernstein Societe Generale upgraded Apple's stock rating to "outperform the market."Onlinepokersitesrealmoney.5%OnlinepokersitesrealmoneyHe pointed out that with the help of generative artificial intelligence updates, Apple's sales prospects will be better.
Apple recorded its biggest one-day percentage increase in more than two weeks after the upgrade, marking the first "buy" rating on the stock by Bernstein's Toni Sacconaghi since early 2018.
Sacconaghi upgraded Apple's stock to "market performance" and wrote that Apple was affected by the weak sales cycle of iPhone 15 and worried about structural damage to its China business.
But the analyst believes that the weakness in the Chinese market is "more cyclical than structural" and that Apple's business in China "shows much higher volatility than Apple's overall business".
"the advantages of the replacement cycle and progressive artificial intelligence prepare Apple for a strong iPhone 16 cycle," Sacconaghi wrote.
Looking ahead to 2025, he expects Apple's revenue to reach $416.9 billion and earnings per share to reach 7%.Onlinepokersitesrealmoney.40 U.S. dollars, higher than market expectations of 412.1 billion dollars in revenue and 7.13 dollars in earnings per share. IPhone sales are likely to grow 10% year-on-year to 248 million units, he added.
Sacconaghi said that while expectations for Apple's second-quarter results on Thursday were low, he noted that Apple shares were "entering a seasonally strong trading period" because Apple had outperformed Apple in the three months leading up to the iPhone release in 15 of the past 17 years.
Sacconaghi kept its target price at $195, while Apple closed Monday at $173.50, a daily high of $176.03. The median target price for the stock is $200, according to LSEG.
The analyst has maintained a rating on Apple's market performance since it was downgraded from "outperform" in February 2018. In November 2006, he began to rate the company as "market performance", and in October 2008, he adjusted its rating back.
Apple shares have fallen 9.9% so far this year and are up 48% in 2023.
