After yesterday’s earnings call, there’s more good news for Apple:
- AAPL closed today at $128.75 per share
- Wall Street analysts bumped up their estimates for Apple shares in the future
- The iconic Fifth Avenue Store will be more than double in size after the current renovation work is completed
The text version of the podcast can be viewed below. To listen to the podcast here, click the play button on the player below. Note to Apple News readers: you’ll need to visit Apple World Today in order to listen to the podcast.
Text Version
This is Steve Sande for Apple World Today, and you’re listening to the AWT News Update for February 1, 2017. Due to other time commitments this will be a short podcast today.
Investors responded warmly today to yesterday’s Apple’s earnings call, with shares in AAPL jumping 6.13 percent to reach a closing price of $128.79 per share. In a way, that was a bit unusual — investors usually respond to good earnings reports from Apple by selling off the stock and lowering the share price, but apparently the news about the future prospects of the company was good enough to keep analysts happy.
How happy are they on Wall Street? So happy that most analysts raised their estimates for Apple. Macquarie Securities, RBC Capital Markets and Guggenheim all bumped their estimates up, with analyst Ben Schachter of Macquarie providing the highest 12-month valuation at $156 a share. Schachter is particularly bullish on the continued double-digit growth in Apple’s Services business. Amit Daryanani of RBC Capital Markets increased his price target from $125 — which was already demolished today — to $140. Daryanani thinks that the “super cycle” for the rumored iPhone 8, coupled with a possible tax holiday to bring home some of those billions stashed overseas, could push Apple’s earnings above $10 per share.
Just a little while ago the Apple Store Fifth Avenue in New York City was shut down for renovations. Finally, there’s news about what’s going to happen with the store during the renovation. It turns out that the location, which is known for the iconic glass cube above the underground store, will be expanded to 77,000 square feet from its existing size of about 32,000 square feet. Apple spokesman Nick Leahy said that the company expects an “incredible” new store, “where our customers will enjoy new services and experiences in a much larger space.” There’s no word on when the store will re-open in its new configuration; currently the Fifth Avenue store has been relocated to the former FAO Schwarz storefront in the General Motors Building.
That’s all for today; I’ll be back tomorrow afternoon with another edition of the AWT News Update.
