Shares of Apple Inc. rose Wednesday after longtime bullish analyst Dan Ives at Wedbush raised his price target, citing signs that demand for iPhones is growing in China.
The tech giant’s AAPL,
the stock climbed 0.7% in morning trading, after falling 1.5% on Tuesday to break a three-day winning streak.
Ives said iPhone supply was stable in January and February, unlike the limited supply in December that was due to issues related to China’s zero-COVID policy. And early indications in March suggest conditions continue to improve.
“Our audits of the iPhone supply chain in Asia this week have been incrementally more positive, with a modest increase in demand from China for Apple with a clear recovery in demand in this key region post-December, despite the uncertain macroeconomic backdrop.” , Ives wrote in a note to clients.
In Apple’s fiscal first quarter, which ended December, iPhone revenue of $65.78 billion accounted for 56.1% of total revenue, and revenue generated in China of $23.91 billion made 20, 4% of total revenue.
Ives said Apple is gaining market share in China and demand in the US and Europe is holding up well. He estimates that about a quarter of current iPhone users have not upgraded their iPhone in more than four years, and he believes the new iPhone users added to Apple’s ecosystem over the past year will lead to a new acceleration of the services business of the company in the coming quarters. .
Read also: Apple’s stock has 5 overlooked catalysts that will drive it higher, analyst says.
Ives reiterated the outperform rating he’s received on Apple over the past three years. He raised his $180 price target from $190 to $190, with the new target implying an increase of about 25% from current levels.
The new price target ties Ives with Evercore ISI’s Amit Daryanani for the second highest target for Apple’s stock, according to FactSet data. The top target on Wall Street is $195, which three analysts — Kyle McNealy of Jefferies, Harsh Kuman of Piper Sandler, and Krish Sankar of TD Cowen — have on the stock.
Of the 40 analysts surveyed by FactSet who follow Apple, 31 are optimistic, seven are neutral and 2 are bearish. The average price target is $169.16.
Apple stock is up 7.0% over the past three months, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA,
is down 2.9% and the tech-friendly Nasdaq Composite COMP,
has gained 4.3%.