Investment bank Morgan Stanley on Wednesday cut its price target on Apple stock, citing a lack of compelling AI features to drive iPhone sales.
Analyst Erik Woodring reiterated his overweight, or buy, rating on Apple stock but lowered his price target to 252 from 275.
On the stock market today, Apple stock fell 1.8% to close at 216.98.
"The delayed rollout of a more advanced Siri means Apple will have fewer features to accelerate iPhone upgrade rates in fiscal 2026," Woodring said in a client note. He also factored in "a degree of tariff headwinds" in calendar year 2025.
As a result, he reduced his forecast for iPhone shipments in calendar years 2025 and 2026 by 1% to 5%, respectively. He now expects Apple to ship 230 million iPhones this year, flat vs. 2024, and 243 million units next year, up 6%.
With the lower iPhone shipments and tariff impact, Woodring also cut his fiscal 2026 revenue and earnings-per-share targets by 5% to 6%.
Last Friday, Bloomberg reported that Apple has delayed the release of an artificial intelligence-powered upgrade to its Siri digital assistant. Apple stock has fallen for three consecutive trading sessions since the report.
An upgraded Siri personal assistant is "the No. 1 AI feature prospective iPhone upgraders are interested in," Woodring said.
Meanwhile, Apple stock is still on the IBD Tech Leaders list.
Follow Patrick Seitz on X, formerly Twitter, at @IBD_PSeitz for more stories on consumer technology, software and semiconductor stocks.
