Apple (AAPL.US) Earnings Report Shines Stock Price Jumps AI Layout and Tariff Pressure Becomes Wall Street's Hot Topic

We have learned that on Friday, Apple (AAPL.US) stock price rose sharply after it announced its strong performance in the third quarter of fiscal year 2025. However, analysts' reactions were mixed.

Goldman Sachs maintained a "Buy" rating on Apple and raised its target price from $207.57 to $245.

Analysts led by Atif Malik pointed out that although the company's performance was boosted in June due to tariff policies and promotions in China, its overall outlook has alleviated investors' concerns about a decline in September revenue.

Analysts noted that Apple clarified that the early release of results only had a limited impact of around 1% (mainly concentrated in US market sales in April), and channel inventory was still within the target range. They believe that the company's forecast shows continued growth momentum for device upgrades and services, although this judgment does not consider potential changes to Google's (GOOGL.US) traffic acquisition costs (TAC).

Malik's team added: "Apple also disclosed that it is increasing its investments in the artificial intelligence (AI) field and may strengthen its AI business layout through acquisitions. This will be seen as a positive signal by the market. Overall, Apple's fundamentals remain stable, and we believe that new products such as the next-generation Siri, foldable screen phones, and Vision Pro 2 will provide support for next year's earnings."

Needham maintained a "Hold" rating, with the institution believing that Apple's third-quarter performance was strong but capital expenditures continued to rise, and AI-related progress was delayed.

Laura Martin led the analysis team pointed out that before the iPhone replacement cycle arrives, Apple's stock price is unlikely to experience a breakthrough. The conference call will discuss the integration plan for Apple Intelligence systems, which is expected to be achieved next year, meaning that 2025 is not the breakout year.

Martin's team stated: "Currently, the Android camp has taken the lead with Gemini technology ahead of iOS. Considering that Apple is inherently a single-product company relying on iPhone, if the gap between iOS and Android continues to widen, its valuation risk will significantly increase."

Oppenheimer reiterated its "Hold" rating.

Analyst Martin Yang pointed out that Apple's third-quarter revenue per share reached $9.4 billion with a growth rate of 4% in the Greater China region, reversing the downward trend of the previous two quarters. At the same time, Yang believes that Apple has successfully navigated complex tariff challenges through its excellent execution and flexible supply chain, and services have shown continued growth potential.

"However, note that Google's TAC policy decision, increasing costs related to tariffs, and lack of breakthrough AI functionality in iPhone products will still suppress the stock price performance," Yang added.

Morgan Stanley maintained a "Buy" rating with a target price raised from $235 to $240.

Erik Woodring led the analysis team stated that this is Apple's strongest quarterly report and guidance in over two years, with hardware products, services, and regional markets all exceeding expectations.

However, Woodring's team added: "From historical experience, this should have triggered a stronger bull run, but before the tariff and regulatory policies become clearer, we expect Apple's stock price to be unable to achieve a breakthrough increase."