Apple stock rises to record high on promise to boost sales with new AI features
The rally comes as a breather for stocks that have underperformed the benchmark S&P 500 this year as Apple struggles with weak sales of premium consumer devices.
If the current stock price remains at $205, Apple’s market value would increase by $180 billion.
Its market capitalization of $3.15 trillion is about $40 billion less than that of Microsoft, the world’s most valuable company. Nvidia, the biggest beneficiary of the AI applications boom and third in terms of market value, is valued at $2.93 trillion.
At its annual developer event, which kicked off on Monday, Apple unveiled an improved Siri virtual assistant that can answer a wider range of questions and perform more complex tasks than before, as well as several AI features across apps that will come with the latest operating system. At least 13 analysts raised their price targets on Apple stock following the developer event, saying the latest features could lead to a surge in new purchases as the company prepares to announce a new line of iPhones in the fall. “Apple is demonstrating that it is investing in advancing its platforms and devices to enable next-generation computing, interfaces and experiences,” said Gartner analyst Tuong Nguyen. Apple’s stock fell 1.9% on Monday but is up 6% year-to-date. During the same period, the S&P 500 index rose 12%.
