Apple shares surged roughly 3.53% on Friday, closing at $333.02 after closing the prior day at $321.66. This moved the stock closer to recent record highs and pushed its market cap at $4.891 trillion.

Main drivers

Several factors appear to have fueled the move amid a mixed-to-weaker broader market (with pressure on some chip and other tech stocks):

• Analyst support and price target increases: Multiple firms issued positive notes. Robert W. Baird raised its target to $330 from $310 (Outperform). Morgan Stanley lifted its target to $364 from $360 (Overweight), citing expectations that fiscal Q3 results (due July 30) could modestly beat consensus. HSBC upgraded to Buy with a $366 target. These reinforced confidence in Apple’s fundamentals ahead of earnings.

• Apple Intelligence progress in China: Reports of successful regulatory registration/approval for Apple’s generative AI features in China (partnering with local firms such as Alibaba’s Tongyi Qianwen as a core model and Baidu secondarily) boosted sentiment. China remains a key market, and clearer access for on-device AI features is viewed as a meaningful long-term positive for services and hardware demand.

• AI strategy and pre-earnings optimism: Investors continue to favor Apple’s relatively capital-efficient, on-device AI approach (lower data-center spending than many peers). This has helped the stock outperform in recent weeks even as other big tech names face higher capex scrutiny. Anticipation of the July 30 earnings report (consensus roughly around $1.88–$1.89 EPS and ~$109 billion revenue, with solid year-over-year growth expected) added to the buying interest.

Recent product-cycle optimism (including the broader Mac refresh pipeline reported earlier in the week) and Apple’s overall ecosystem strength have provided a supportive backdrop, but today’s jump was more directly tied to the analyst actions, China AI milestone, and earnings positioning.

MacDailyNews Take: Stock moves can reverse quickly, and no single factor is ever the sole cause. Apple has not issued company-specific news today that appears to be the primary catalyst. Earnings on July 30th, whcih we will, as usual cover with live notes, will be Apple’s next major test.

‎
Please help support MacDailyNews — and enjoy subscriber-only articles, comments, chat, and more — by subscribing to our Substack: macdailynews.substack.com. Thank you!

Support MacDailyNews at no extra cost to you by using this link to shop at Amazon.

The post Apple stock surges over 3% on analyst upgrades, China AI approval, and pre-earnings optimism appeared first on MacDailyNews.

Bank of America expects Apple to surpass Wall Street expectations when it reports fiscal third-quarter results on July 30, marking Tim Cook’s final earnings call as CEO.

In a note released Monday, BofA analyst Wamsi Mohan maintained a Buy rating on the stock and a $380 price target. The firm is modeling revenue of $109 billion and earnings per share (EPS) of $1.89, comfortably ahead of consensus estimates of $108 billion in revenue and $1.87 in EPS. That would represent approximately 16% year-over-year revenue growth, exceeding Apple’s own guidance range of 14-17%.

Investor attention heading into the report is likely to focus on three key areas: component cost inflation, the durability of gross margins, and the implications of Cook’s departure from the CEO role.

BofA noted that product gross margins are expected to decline sequentially in both the June and September quarters due to the staggered launch schedule of the next iPhone lineup. Pro, Pro Max, and Fold models are slated for September, while the base model and Air are not expected until March. The firm views the near-term margin pressure as “transitory,” forecasting a rebound to 38.5% in the December quarter as the new devices launch at higher prices.

On the services side, BofA projects 14% year-over-year growth in the third quarter. While App Store revenue growth has slowed to 3.2% from 9.8% in the previous quarter, the firm anticipates strength in iCloud and Licensing to more than offset the slowdown.

MacDailyNews Note: Looking further ahead, the bank adopted a more cautious stance for the second half of calendar 2026. It modeled fourth-quarter revenue at $106 billion and EPS at $1.88, below Street forecasts of $114 billion and $2.01, citing potential volatility from the new split iPhone launch cadence.

Despite the tempered longer-term outlook, BofA’s overall message remains positive, reinforcing confidence in Apple’s ability to deliver a solid beat in the upcoming report.

‎
Please help support MacDailyNews — and enjoy subscriber-only articles, comments, chat, and more — by subscribing to our Substack: macdailynews.substack.com. Thank you!

Support MacDailyNews at no extra cost to you by using this link to shop at Amazon.

The post BofA bullish on Apple: Expects earnings beat on July 30 and reiterates $380 price target appeared first on MacDailyNews.