I think it’s an understatement to say that investors are looking for evidence that Apple (AAPL) will be able to catch up in AI.
This Monday will go a long way to giving investors an answer as the company introduces a revamped Siri at its Worldwide Developers Conference.
This week brings a huge earnings test for AAPL, AMZN, GOOG, META and MSFT. I’m going to sell Microsoft out of my 12-18 month Jubak Picks Portfolio on Monday, April 27, ahead of the earnings report. That position is up 319% since I initiated it on June 14., 2018. I am keeping Microsoft in my long-term 50 Stocks Portfolio. That position is up 40% since I initiated it on January 18, 2022.
The Magnificent Seven stocks–Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla–now account for about 35% to 40% of the market cap of the Standard & Poor’s 500 index.
Mark Gurman reports on Bloomerg that Apple (AAPL) has delayed its long-planned upgrade to the Siri virtual assistant again. Apple has run into snags during testing in recent weeks, potentially pushing back the release of several highly anticipated functions. After planning to include the new capabilities in iOS 26.4–an operating system update slated for March–Apple is now working to spread them out over future versions. That would mean postponing some features until at least iOS 26.5, due in May, and iOS 27, which comes out in September. Apple first announced plans for the revamped Siri in June 2024.
A week of Big Tech earnings reports will confirm or reverse what sure looks like a sector rotation away from tech shares and into metal and mining company stocks.
Prices for memory chips are forecast to soar in 2026. but what just as bad/even worse it looks like chip customers are looking at serious supply shortages during the year.
Higher prices and supply shortages could be enough to put earnings at risk at some high multiple cloud and AI companies.
I expect more volatility as forth quarter earnings season picks up speed. Next week, despite the short week created by Monday’s Martin Luther King holiday, 157 companies are scheduled to report earnings with highlights that include Netflix (NFLX) on Tuesday; and General Electric (GE),Procter & Gamble (PG), and Intel (INTC) on Thursday.
India has overtaken China to become the top source of smartphones sold in the United States. In the quarter through June, India was the largest manufacturer of smartphones shipped to the United States for the first time, accounting for 44% of the market, according to Canalys data. China accounted for more than 60% of all estimated shipments a year ago. That’s down to just 25% now.
Apple (AAPL) is moving away from a strict reliance on in-house models for Siri and is actively exploring partnerships with third-party AI providers like OpenAI (ChatGPT) and Anthropic (Claude). Apple had focused on
developing proprietary AI technology for its Siri digital assistant.
My first take away from President Donald Trump’s Rose Garden speech on his new global reciprocal tariff plan is that it worse than expected. In some cases shockingly worse.
By itself, the display stand in the main Vodafone store in Venice doesn’t prove much. But with the context of European anger at U.S tariffs and consumer boycott of U.S. goods in countries like Denmark, I found the empty rack fro Apple’s iPhone and the big display of phones from China’s Xiaomi, well, suggestive.
Today’s Quick Pick is Apple (AAPL). This is a short term buy or, if you own it, a “get ready to sell.” Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference happens in early May, and the stock usually gets a bounce from new product and technology announcements. This year we’re likely to hear more on AI. Apple’s stock hasn’t performed all that well lately, and I don’t want to hold the stock after the expected pop from the conference and new product releases in the fall. I worry about the long term choices the company is making. Apple has decided not to offer a low-price, affordable introductory iPhone as a gateway to their suite of products. They’ve effectively ceded the lower end of the market to other players–especially in China. They’ve also just announced that the AI add-ons to Siri they promised have been delayed and it’s unclear when they’ll be available. Apple is lagging in AI as other companies race ahead. We can expect disappointing sales in December–particularly out of China. I don’t want to hold on to the stock at the end of the year and I’m looking to sell on a bounce after the conference and new product launches in September.
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