Apple stock rose Thursday after the chief executive of wireless carrier T-Mobile US offered positive comments about early demand for iPhone 16 handsets.
In an interview Wednesday on CNBC, T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert said his company is seeing more sales of the iPhone 16 than it did for last year's series of the smartphones.
Apple officially will begin iPhone 16 sales on Friday after a week of preorders. The AI-enhanced handsets range from the regular iPhone 16 up to the top-of-the-line iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max models.
"The first week was better than last year," Sievert said. "Not only good, but better than last year. And people are buying Pros, they're buying Maxs. So they're buying up the food chain, and they're buying at a greater rate than last year."
The delayed rollout of artificial intelligence features, branded Apple Intelligence, might lengthen the buying cycle for the iPhone 16, Sievert said. The first batch of AI features will be in a software update in October.
Apple Stock Retakes Key Level
On the stock market today, Apple stock jumped 3.7% to close at 228.87. With the move higher, Apple shares popped above their 50-day moving average line.
On Monday, Apple stock retreated after several analysts said first-weekend preorders were lower than expected, especially for Pro models.
On Thursday, Needham analyst Laura Martin reiterated her buy rating on Apple stock with a price target of 260.
In a client note, she said the top debate among investors is when the iPhone upgrade cycle will begin. Some think it might not occur until the iPhone 17 comes out next year, she said.
Apple stock is on the IBD Tech Leaders list.
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