Apple Stock Stands Out as Smartphone Shipments Grow and Buck the Industry Trend

The ongoing memory market crisis has been affecting global smartphone shipments, which fell by 4% year-over-year (YOY) in the second quarter. However, iPhone-maker Apple (AAPL) is bucking this downtrend, alongside smartphone vendor Samsung Electronics. Apple posted its strongest second-quarter results on record, reaching a 20% market share, up from 16% in the same quarter last year, in what is traditionally the company’s slowest quarterly period. 

The iPhone17 series has given Apple one of its strongest iPhone refresh cycles. However, now the company faces a new challenge. It can no longer protect its customers from rising memory prices. Although iPhone prices remain untouched, Apple has raised prices for its iPads and MacBooks. Therefore, it remains to be seen whether iPhones will be affected next year if high memory prices persist. 

Apple’s stock increased intraday on July 13 after Citi analyst Asiya Merchant maintained a “Buy” rating and raised the price target to $365. Merchant believes that the company’s ability to implement selective price increases would keep its margins afloat, given its robust brand presence. 

Against this backdrop and an impending earnings report, we take a closer look at Apple. 

About Apple Stock

Apple is one of the largest companies in the world and remains a major force in technology, with recent developments centered on new software features, intelligence capabilities, and regulatory updates across its platforms. The company is headquartered at Apple Park in Cupertino, California and has a massive market capitalization of $4.66 trillion.

Apple continues to attract attention for both its product ecosystem and its business updates, including recent investor-relations announcements and platform changes. Its scale, global reach, and ongoing innovation make it one of the most closely watched companies in the market.

Strong sentiments surround Apple’s stock at the moment. The company’s strong results have supported its stock in the near term. Investors have also been responsive to Apple’s idea of embedding its gadgets with AI. 

Over the past 52 weeks, the stock has gained 51.3%, while it is up 16% year-to-date (YTD). Apple’s shares reached a 52-week high of $323.45 on July 13, following the Citigroup price target hike, but are down 2.8% from that level. 

Apple’s forward adjusted price-to-earnings GAAP ratio of 36.21 times is 9.07% higher than the industry average of 33.20 times. 

Apple’s Q2 Results Showed Strong Demand

Apple reported its best second-quarter results (the quarter ended in March), fueled by a surge in demand for its iPhone 17 lineup. The company’s revenue increased by 16.6% YOY to $111.18 billion, exceeding the $109.48 billion expected by Wall Street analysts. iPhone sales increased 21.7% YOY to $56.99 billion, and Services revenue grew 16.3% to $30.98 billion. The company’s EPS for the second fiscal quarter was $2.01, up 21.8% YOY and higher than the $1.92 expected by Street analysts. 

The Street professionals are robustly optimistic about Apple’s future earnings. For the current fiscal year, EPS is projected to surge 17.2% annually to $8.74, followed by a 9.5% growth to $9.57 in the next fiscal year. Also, analysts expect the company’s EPS to grow by 19.8% YOY to $1.88 for the third quarter of fiscal 2026 (to be reported on July 30, after the market closes). 

What Do Analysts Think About Apple’s Stock?

In addition to Citi’s bullish forecast, other Wall Street analysts have expressed confidence in this tech giant. Recently, analysts at Evercore ISI reiterated an “Outperform” rating on Apple’s stock and a $365 price target. This reiteration came after Apple filed its lawsuit against OpenAI. 

On the other hand, last month, Apple’s stock was downgraded from “Outperform” to “Hold” by analysts at KGI Securities, with the firm giving a $315 price target. This was carried out after Apple revealed plans to raise product prices due to rising memory and storage chip costs. 

However, in the same month, BofA maintained a “Buy” rating on Apple and reiterated a $380 price target, following the company’s WWDC announcements. The analyst said Apple’s upgraded Siri is strategically important because it can understand context, handle multiple inputs, and work across apps throughout the ecosystem.

Apple has long been a popular name on Wall Street, with analysts awarding it a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating overall. Of the 42 analysts rating the stock, 23 have given it a “Strong Buy” rating, three a “Moderate Buy,” 15 a “Hold,” and one a “Strong Sell.” The consensus price target of $315.38 represents a marginal upside from current levels. However, the Street-high price target of $400 implies a 27% upside.