Amid mixed signals about iPhone 17 sales, Apple (AAPL) stock has been an underperformer lately. And one analyst sees it limping along until next spring.
Evercore ISI analyst Amit Daryanani said he is fielding a “ton of questions” from investors on Apple stock lately.
“The struggle investors have is identifying what drives upside from current levels,” Daryanani said in a client note Friday. “A meaningful sentiment improvement may hinge on either a sizable upgrade cycle or visible AI progress (Siri-driven) — which implies a potential inflection point could emerge in spring 2026 when Apple is expected to launch a revamped Siri offering.”
Daryanani rates Apple stock as outperform with a price target of 290.
On the stock market today, Apple stock rose 1% to close at 247.66.
Apple stock is in a 41-week consolidation pattern with a buy point of 260.10, according to IBD MarketSurge charts.
In the four weeks since the launch of the iPhone 17 series smartphones, order lead times have remained mostly stable in the U.S., Daryanani said in a report Saturday. Some key international markets, such as China, Germany, Japan and the U.K., have seen a shortening of lead times, particularly for the top-of-the-line Pro Max model, he said.
Apple Stock Gets Price-Target Cut
Jefferies analyst Edison Lee said his reading of iPhone 17 sales is that demand is “cooling” for the new handsets.
“Our latest tracking shows that the delivery lead time for (iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max) has been falling mostly across the six markets we track,” Lee said in a report Sunday. “The lead time for the (iPhone) 17 base model has been holding up the best (17 to 22 days) among the four models.”
Demand has shifted more to the base model this year, which is likely to impact earnings, because it’s a lower-margin product, Lee said.
Lee reiterated his underperform rating on Apple stock and cut his price target to 203.07 from 205.16.
Follow Patrick Seitz on X at @IBD_PSeitz for more stories on consumer technology, software and semiconductor stocks.
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