Apple inc. (AAPL) – Request report Shares rose higher on Tuesday after a report that the tech giant is planning a significant increase in its iPhone production to meet an expected rise in demand in 2021.
Japanese business newspaper Nikkei said Apple has instructed suppliers to produce about 230 million iPhone handsets next year, up 30% from the pre-pandemic pace of 2019, with about 96 million planned for the first half of the year. year.
Foxconn Technology Group (FXCNY) , the world’s largest electronics manufacturer and Apple’s main supplier, said last month that sales will grow by about 10% in 2021 amid what it believes is strong demand for consumer electronics in general and the iPhone 12 more in the special. Apple typically accounts for about half of the annual sales of Taiwan-based Foxconn.
Apple stock was marked 4% higher on Tuesday at the start of trading to change hands at $ 126.57 each, a move that would expand the stock’s gains to about 47% in six months.
Last week, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives, longtime Apple supporter, raised his price target for the group by $ 10 a share, to $ 160 a share – the highest on Wall Street – with a new bull case level of $ 200 and an outperform rating, citing “a marked increase” in demand for iPhone in both the US and China.
Ives said sales of the iPhone 12, launched in October, could approach levels of 80 million to 85 million units next year, well above his previous forecast of between 65 million and 70 million, based on supply chain observations and a increasing demand.
He also noted that between 350 million and 950 million older iPhones are within the window of an upgrade, which he says could translate into an “unprecedented upgrade cycle” for the world’s largest technology company.