Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) rose over 1% and was on track for a seventh straight session of gain, as the tech giant reportedly aims to ship at least 90M iPhone 16 devices in the latter half of this year.
The stock was trading at $231.26 on Wednesday afternoon, after spiking 1.6% to session highs.
According to a Bloomberg report, the company told suppliers and partners that it’s targeting about 10% growth in shipments of new iPhones compared with their predecessors.
The Cupertino, California-based company gained nearly 6% in the preceding six sessions. The stock has gained more than 18% so far this year, compared to the nearly 17% rise in the broader S&P 500 Index.
AAPL is up 18% over the past one month. The stock closed 0.4% higher on Tuesday at $228.68.
Looking at Seeking Alpha’s Quant rating, AAPL has a score of 3.47 out of 5. The company received A+ in the prospect of profitability, while it got an F in valuation factor.
Turning to the Wall Street community, 31 analysts gave AAPL a Buy and above. 12 analysts have given the stock a Hold recommendation, and three recommended Sell or lower.
Seeking Alpha analysts are also cautious and see the stock as a Hold.
Earlier in the day, brokerage Needham raised its price target to $260 from $220 and reiterated Buy rating, noting that the company is spending its capital on share buybacks instead of generative artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Piper Sandler also upped its price target on the stock, but noted that much of the recent good news is already “priced in.”
The “Magnificent 7” member is expected to report its third quarter results on August 1.
“Apple’s fiscal Q3 earnings report may be overshadowed by anticipation for the upcoming iPhone launch and AI push,” said Seeking Alpha analyst Bill Maurer.