Apple's next generation iPhone is sparking new bullish sentiment on Wall Street.
Bank of America is the latest bank to raise its target price for the stock, expected to be $256 per share. This target price means that Apple's stock can still rise by about 12.5% from the current level.
The bank emphasized that the next upgrade of iPhone is the key to driving up Apple's stock price. Bank of America believes that consumer excitement about generative artificial intelligence and the outdated devices currently held will drive a multi-year upgrade cycle.
On Thursday, Bank of America cited a survey it conducted and wrote, "After the Global Developers Conference, the proportion of respondents who plan to upgrade their smartphones in 2024 has increased, and we believe this is an optimistic trend. In our view, the survey results indicate that users are more confident in purchasing the iPhone 16, which may be driven by the introduction of Apple's smart technology
Wall Street sees continuous price increases
Other analysts are also optimistic about the upcoming release of iPhone 16 in September, which will be Apple's first device to consider artificial intelligence capabilities. Apple showcased its "Apple Intelligence" product at last month's Global Developers Conference, which upgraded Siri to an intelligent digital assistant with more conversational capabilities than its current version.
Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, a Wall Street investment bank, estimated in a report on Thursday that the shipment of new phones will approach 90 million units, exceeding Wall Street's expectations. The bank has set a target price of $275 for the stock.
However, it should be noted that the functionality of iPhone 16 is not the only catalyst, and "suppressed demand for new models" is also one of the reasons. Wedbush said that an estimated 270 million iPhone users have not upgraded their devices in four years.
Bank of America also agrees with this viewpoint. The bank found in its investigation that a large portion of users are still using old models, and the number of consumers willing to upgrade their phones more frequently has increased. Consumers have a higher preference for Apple than other smartphone brands.
At the same time, due to the increasing demand for Apple products from Chinese consumers, the threat of decreased purchasing enthusiasm from Chinese consumers that investors were concerned about a year ago is weakening.
At the end of last month, CFRA and Bernstein also raised Apple's target stock price to $240 per share. CFRA analyst Angelo Zino's previous target price was $210, and he stated that Apple is preparing to turn the iPhone into the "ultimate personal assistant".
Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconaghi believes that Apple's WWDC keynote speech has made the company a leader in artificial intelligence, with the ability to bring AI to the public through its over 1 billion iPhone user installed base.
Apple can bring artificial intelligence to the public and increase its daily use. According to reports, Apple has not paid for ChatGPT, which highlights its influence, "he added.