Analyst: Apple Will See 25 Pct Jump In Stock Price Due To 5G

Wedbush Analyst Dan Ives said that upcoming 5G iPhones from Apple will keep the stock in a “supercycle,” raising the stock price to $350, which is 25 percent higher than Friday’s (Dec. 20) closing at $279, according to CNBC. Apple shares have risen about 80 percent in 2019.

“We’re only halfway there through what I believe is a supercycle,” Ives said. He predicted that the company will release four new phones with 5G technology, meaning faster connection speeds and more capabilities that will attune to newer technologies, like autonomous cars.

Some analysts have said that 5G technology will set fire to the sale of iPhones, especially since many people have been holding on to their phones for longer. One report said that the company could end up shipping as much as 80 million phones. According to a Piper Jaffray survey of 1,050 iPhone users, 23 percent said they would upgrade to a 5G iPhone, up from 18 percent just a few months before.

Not everyone agrees with Ives’ prediction. Loup Ventures Managing Partner Gene Munster said that investors should control their expectations for the new technology because it will take a while for it to be adopted, and there will be a slump in the meantime. The first year, he said, is going to be a “disappointment for investors.”

“Ultimately, this is a massive opportunity for Apple, huge play on 5G, but it’s going to take a while for networks to roll out coverage,” Munster said.

Ives said there will be a two-pronged update: that the first will occur in 2020 and the second will happen the following year.

“Right now, about a third of the install base, they have not upgraded their phones in 39 months,” he said. “So, we’re going into what’s going to be a supercycle. I think you could have a mix of 4G, 5G. But that’s, right now, what I love about this set up of Apple.”