Amid surging memory prices, the global smartphone industry faces a challenging year ahead. However, Citi analysts believe Apple is better equipped than its rivals to handle the pressure.
In a research note released Sunday night, the firm made minor downward adjustments to its fiscal 2026 and 2027 earnings estimates for the iPhone giant. Despite this, Citi maintained its Buy rating on Apple stock and kept the price target at $315.
Although Apple isn’t entirely shielded from escalating component costs, its stronger position allows it to potentially capitalize on competitors’ struggles and capture additional market share.
“Apple has learned its lesson from previous memory demand cycles.
“We believe Apple’s procurement team and purchasing strategies have improved over the years,” wrote Citi analyst Atif Malik. “And Apple likely has the best negotiation power among all smartphone vendors.”
Citi estimated a 1.4 percentage-point hit to Apple’s gross margins from rising memory prices in 2026 and a less than 0.5-point impact in 2027. The company’s smaller and lower-cost rivals may be more susceptible to rising component prices.
One sign Apple is managing the pressure better than its competitors: The company last week unexpectedly launched multiple products at more affordable prices. The new iPhone 17e starts at $599, below the starting price of $799 for the standard iPhone 17. The MacBook Neo also starts at $599, a 40% discount from the last-generation MacBook Air at $999.”
MacDailyNews Take: “Evercore ISI analyst Amit Daryanani concurs, writing in a note to clients, “We think investors are under-appreciating how well AAPL is perhaps managing through the memory inflation issue and, critically, how recent product launches demonstrate its ability to offset these pressures.” Evercore reiterated Apple as “Outperform” (Buy) with a $330 price target.
We’re accumulating on the overwrought dips, as always. Anything in the $250s (or, dare we, below, pretty please?) is an absolute gift! – MacDailyNews, March 6, 2026/a>
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