Apple is battling to keep the iPhone relevant in China.New figures show foreign smartphone shipments to China almost halved in November.Apple's struggles come in the face of stiff competition from local smartphone makers like Huawei.Apple's battle to keep the iPhone popular in China appears to be getting tougher as foreign smartphone sales in the country dipped by almost half in just one month, according to new data.Advertisement Signs of fresh struggles for Apple came on Friday as new figures from the gov ...

The S&P 500 (^GSPC -0.22%) is home to 500 companies from 11 different sectors of the economy, making it the most diversified of the major U.S. stock market indexes.But the S&P is weighted by market capitalization, so the largest companies have a greater influence over its performance than the smallest. As of this writing, the following five companies have a combined market cap of $14.9 trillion, representing 28.8% of the entire value of the index:Apple (AAPL -2.62%), $3.8 trillion.Nvidia (NVDA 2.99%), $3.3 ...

Nvidia (NVDA 2.99%) and Apple (AAPL -2.62%) are very popular stocks among individual and institutional investors, but two highly successful hedge fund managers aggressively bought one and sold the other in the third quarter:Ken Griffin of Citadel Advisors purchased 4.7 million shares of Nvidia, nearly tripling his stake. It is now his third-largest position excluding options. He also sold 4.9 million shares of Apple, reducing his stake by 90%. It had been his fourth-largest position excluding options.Steven ...

证券时报网讯，苹果公司同意以9500万美元和解Siri录音隐私诉讼案。 该诉讼指控苹果未经用户同意，通过Siri收集并分享私人对话内容给第三方。 苹果公司需在六个月内永久删除2019年10月前收集的Siri个人音频记录。 校对：刘星莹 ...

Investment Rating - The report gives Apple (AAPL.O) an "Overweight" rating, citing its strong fundamentals and growth potential [3] Core Views - Apple Intelligence, launched in 2024, is expected to drive a new growth cycle for iPhone and other hardware products, leveraging AI capabilities [5][12] - Apple's ecosystem, user loyalty, and brand strength provide a competitive moat against Android competitors [72][87] - The integration of AI features is expected to accelerate hardware upgrade cycles, particularly for iPhone [81][111] Business Overview - iPhone remains the core revenue driver, contributing ~70% of Product revenue, while Services revenue has been growing at ~10% annually [134] - Apple's Services business, including App Store, iCloud, and Apple Music, benefits from a large and growing user base of 2.2 billion active devices [101] - Product revenue has seen low single-digit declines in recent years due to macroeconomic headwinds and high base effects from the iPhone 12 cycle [134] AI and Technology - Apple Intelligence, integrated into iOS, iPadOS, and macOS, offers AI-powered features like writing tools, image generation, and enhanced Siri capabilities [12][137] - The AI system combines on-device models, private cloud computing, and external GPT models to ensure privacy and efficiency [158][62] - Apple's on-device and server models outperform many larger models in benchmark tests, particularly in safety and writing tasks [52][174] Competitive Landscape - Apple dominates the high-end smartphone market, with limited competition in its price segment, especially in developed markets like the US and Japan [87][199] - The company's strong brand identity, design excellence, and iOS ecosystem create high switching costs for users [191] - While Chinese manufacturers like Xiaomi and OPPO are gaining share in the mid-range market, they face challenges in competing with Apple in the premium segment [199] Financial Performance and Outlook - Apple's revenue is expected to grow at a CAGR of ~7% from FY2025 to FY2027, driven by AI-powered hardware upgrades and Services growth [105][108] - Non-GAAP EPS is projected to increase from $7.36 in FY2025 to $9.49 in FY2027, reflecting a 10.6% CAGR [105][108] - The company maintains a strong balance sheet, with consistent dividend payouts and share buybacks [105]

Apple's AI Software and Market Performance - Apple unveiled its AI software, Apple Intelligence, in June, with a slow rollout and potential impact on 2025 sales [1] - Apple shares have gained around 31% since the start of the year, outperforming the S&P 500's 24% increase [21] Technical Analysis and Key Price Levels - Apple shares moved lower Monday morning, tracking a broader decline for U S stocks, but the company remains close to reaching a $4 trillion market capitalization [17] - A bearish evening star pattern has formed over the past three trading sessions, indicating a potential reversal in the stock [7] - Key support levels to watch are around $237 and $218, with a bullish price target near $278 [7][13] - The first level to eye sits around $237, near the 50-day moving average and the ascending triangle's top trendline [6] - A decisive close below $237 could see Apple shares retrace to the $218 level [14] - The bullish price target of $278 is calculated using the measuring principle, adding $41 to the initial breakout area of $237 [15] Market Activity and Investor Interest - Volume spikes in the stock on June 21, Sept 20, and Dec 20 coincided with triple witching days, suggesting portfolio rebalancing by larger market participants [2] - Last Thursday, Apple set a fresh record high just above $260, with analysts predicting a "golden era of growth" in 2025 due to AI demand [20] - Investors are watching if Apple shares can hit $264 62, the price needed to reach a $4 trillion market cap [20] Chart Patterns and Momentum - Apple shares have trended higher since breaking out above a broad ascending triangle formation earlier this month [18] - The relative strength index (RSI) made a comparatively shallower high as the stock climbed to a record high last week, creating a bearish divergence and indicating weakening price momentum [8]

Analyst Ratings and Insights - Benzinga's Analyst Ratings API provides high-quality stock ratings curated through partnerships with major sell-side banks, displayed daily three hours before the U.S. equity market opens [1] - Analyst insights from Benzinga Pro subscribers and readers can be used as trading indicators to outperform the stock market [1] - Wall Street analysts make daily stock picks, but their track records vary widely, leading to confusion among investors [3] - Benzinga's Analyst Stock Ratings page allows readers to access the latest analyst ratings and sort them by analyst accuracy [6] Recent Analyst Ratings - RBC Capital reiterated an Outperform rating on Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (HBAN) with a price target of $20, seeing around 22% upside [2] - B of A Securities maintained a Buy rating on Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL, GOOG) with a price target of $210, predicting over 9% upside [4] - Piper Sandler maintained a Neutral rating on Enfusion, Inc. (ENFN) and raised the price target from $10 to $11.5, forecasting around 14% upside [7] - Wedbush maintained an Outperform rating on Apple Inc. (AAPL) and increased the price target from $300 to $325, expecting around 28% surge [8] - Loop Capital maintained a Buy rating on Datadog, Inc. (DDOG) and raised the price target from $160 to $200, projecting around 37% upside [10] Recent Market Performance - U.S. stocks settled lower on Friday, with the Dow Jones index dipping more than 300 points during the session [5] - The Dow Jones index gained around 0.4% last week, ending a three-week losing streak [5] - The S&P 500 added 0.7% last week [5] - The Nasdaq rose about 0.8% during the week [5] Recent Company News - Huntington Bancshares recently decreased its prime rate to 7.5% [2] - Google-parent Alphabet has laid out its remedies proposal in the high-stakes search distribution case with the Department of Justice (DOJ) [4] - Enfusion reported worse-than-expected third-quarter financial results on Nov. 4 [7] - Apple has stopped selling its iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, and third-generation iPhone SE models across most European Union countries [8] - Datadog announced the pricing of an upsized offering of $870 million in convertible senior notes on Dec. 20 [10]

Career Background - The individual has a career spanning from 1975 to 2001, including roles as a trader, analyst, and portfolio manager [1] - Former head of equity trading at Northern Trust Co in Chicago [1] - Currently a private investor, founder of a nonprofit investor advocacy firm, and private investing coach [1] Investment Philosophy - Focuses on teaching retail investors the same skills and strategies used with high net worth clients as a private wealth manager [1] - Emphasizes the satisfaction derived from giving back to the community rather than helping the wealthy become richer [1] Current Holdings - Holds a beneficial long position in shares of AAPL and NVDA through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives [3] - No business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in the article [3]

Market Performance - Every stock in the Fateful Eight except Microsoft outperformed the S&P 500 in 2024, with the other seven at least doubling the gains of the broader market [1] - 168 stocks in the S&P 500 are down for the year, and more than 70% of the names in the index have underperformed it [1] - The S&P 500 has gained roughly 26% in 2024, with a 55% increase over the last two years [13] Concentration in the S&P 500 - More than one-third of the S&P 500's value comes from just eight companies [2] - The Fateful Eight now make up roughly 34.4% of the market, with their weights in the S&P 500 as follows: Apple (7.66%), Microsoft (6.37%), Nvidia (6.71%), Amazon (4.16%), Meta Platforms (2.57%), Tesla (2.48%), Alphabet (2.24%), and Broadcom (2.24%) [7][9][13] Equal-Weight Funds - Equal-weight S&P 500 funds have vastly underperformed standard S&P 500 funds this year but would be more resilient if the Fateful Eight experience a pullback [10] - Equal-weight funds rebalance their holdings quarterly to ensure each company accounts for the same share of the total, not based on market cap [10] Market Dynamics - High-flying tech and artificial intelligence stocks have surged in price, offsetting hundreds of underperformers in the S&P 500 [13] - The market's gains may eventually broaden, with the rest of the S&P 500 stocks potentially appreciating if the lofty valuations on the Fateful Eight normalize [6] - Big tech names are viewed as defensive plays in an economic environment featuring more inflation and fewer interest rate cuts [6] Company Performance - The Fateful Eight, including Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Amazon, Meta Platforms, Tesla, Alphabet, and Broadcom, have shown extraordinary performances this year [13] - Broadcom's market cap recently surged past the $1 trillion mark, leading to its inclusion in the Fateful Eight [13]

Apple plans to expand in generative AI and reportedly launch more hardware products in 2025.Apple Intelligence software is still expected to drive a super cycle in iPhone sales.It faces competition in mixed reality and potential tariffs affecting Chinese sales and production.Timing is everything for Apple going into 2025.Advertisement Apple's stage is set for the new year, with big plans for expansion in generative AI, reports of a home device lineup launching soon, and talks of a more affordable iPhone in ...