Apple’s stock is suddenly looking like a safe haven in a stormy tech market—precisely the opposite of what investors complained about for years.
What used to be the biggest criticism (“Apple has no real AI story”) has flipped into its biggest advantage. While the rest of the “Magnificent Seven” and other AI-heavy names get hammered, Apple is quietly outperforming both the tech-centric Nasdaq Composite and the broader S&P 500 so far in November.
The reason is straightforward: when the hot AI trade cools off, money rotates out of the usual suspects and into the one mega-cap tech name that isn’t viewed as an AI stock. In a risk-off tape for technology, not being tied to the AI boom has paradoxically become a feature, not a bug.
“Apple shares have shown resilience compared to their mega-cap peers as they have significantly less exposure to the AI cycle,” D.A. Davidson analyst Gil Luria told MarketWatch in emailed comments.
Microsoft’s stock MSFT is getting close to joining Nvidia, Amazon.com, and Tesla shares in correction territory, which is defined as a 10% drop or more off a recent closing high. And Meta’s stock is already in a bear market, meaning it’s off more than 20% from its recent closing high. But Apple and Alphabet shares stand out, down less than 3% from their recent highs.
While people use their iPhones to access AI tools, “the current iPhone upgrade cycle is showing that [Apple] does not need AI in order to drive demand,” Luria continued. “An aging iPhone base is translating to the best upgrade cycle in years, which is helping deliver the current resilience.”
MacDailyNews Take: As we can see with Apple missing GenAI, sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good.
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