Ben Bajarin
CEO & Principal Analyst of Creative Strategies, Semiconductors-to-Software Research
Apple's next phase of growth is still very hardware-centric, making hardware engineering chief John Ternus a good choice to succeed Tim Cook as CEO on September 1. An engineering CEO can work through hard roadmap challenges as existing categories get more aggressive and a slew of new hardware categories arrive, and the market should like him. Cook stays as executive chairman to handle geopolitics so Ternus can focus on execution, ending angst over who leads Apple for the next 10-15 years. api.omny.fmÂ
Apple's AI-enabled iPhone 17 cycle is driving demand so strong that TSMC chip supply became the bottleneck. March-quarter revenue hit a record $111.2B, up 17%, with iPhone revenue up 22% to $57B and services a record $31B, up 16%. Every region grew double digits, including 28% in China. Two billion active devices make it the stickiest ecosystem in tech, and buybacks cut the share count 3-4% a year. x.comÂ
Microsoft's 50% Azure growth and prospect of positive cash flow in 2027 make the stock look bulletproof. Headcount cuts, lower Anthropic spend, a better Copilot routed to cheaper tokens, and coming proprietary chips and model usage add to the case. It should get Apple's multiple plus recognition for cybersecurity. x.com x.comÂ
Apple was hard to own into earnings, and guidance came in softer than expected. Services guidance was $30.74B versus $31.22B expected, and China $18.8B versus $19.6B. Memory and storage chip prices have quadrupled on AI demand, raising margin fears and pushing Apple to lift Mac and iPad prices up to 25%, with bigger iPhone hikes expected. Shares had surged into the print, so even a beat was priced in, and Siri AI underwhelms. Apple has mostly been rising on fluff news. x.com x.comÂ
Apple's balance sheet and lack of spend keep a bid under its stock whether the market rises or falls. That bid gets stronger with foldable phones that break. x.comÂ
Apple's authorization of up to $100B in share buybacks, alongside a dividend increase, is bullish for the stock. x.comÂ
Apple's growth valuation gives too much credit to a $2,000 folding iPhone and a touchscreen MacBook. Its 36.16 forward P/E and 3.54 PEG are higher than recent readings over the past two years, making this a point to take serious profits. x.comÂ
Apple's sweeping price increases deliver the revenue-growth bull case. It is raising prices on current and even years-old products, refurbished units included, such as a 30% bump on the 2019 HomePod mini, and the iPhone 18 looks set for a $200+ increase. How demand responds is uncertain: people may keep devices longer, and if volumes nosedive Apple will likely add some forced obsolescence. x.com x.com x.com x.com x.com x.com x.comÂ
Apple will likely report its biggest sales ever in Q4 earnings and the stock should rip, even though the new foldable iPhone looks absolutely gross. x.comÂ
Apple's roughly 40 times trailing and 37 times forward earnings make the shares too expensive ahead of next week's results. A short looks reasonable, though a sell-the-news reaction after earnings remains uncertain. x.com x.comÂ
Apple will keep hitting all-time highs because it makes money off Alphabet and both companies capture a return on that relationship, so negative takes on Siri AI, like @anandragn's, can be ignored. The near term is uncertain. x.comÂ