Freshly split Apple Inc shares closed at a high on Tuesday, with investors evidently betting the company is set to unveil popular new gadgets, perhaps a smartwatch and an iPhone 6.
Shares in the iPhone, iPad, iPod and Macintosh computer maker were trading at US$100.53 each when the formal trading day ended at the NASDAQ exchange, and dropped just US$0.10 in after-market transactions.
“After improving the executive leadership team and adding over a dozen leaders in key areas of competency including fashion, medical research, digital content, marketing and wearables, we believe CEO Tim Cook now has the bench in place to execute on new product categories,” Morgan Stanley said in a note to investors.
Morgan Stanley recommended being in position for “iPhone 6 and iWatch product cycles” and set a price target of US$110 per Apple share.
Apple is rumored to be planning a Sept. 9 event to unveil its long anticipated large-screen iPhone. Apple has declined to comment on what it has in store.
Apple’s next generation of iPhones are expected to have larger screens and faster processors.
The new high for Apple shares came a little more than a month after a seven-for-one stock split.
The stock split, announced earlier this year, has no impact on the underlying value of Apple. However, such a move can give a company a psychological boost by lowering the cost of each share.
Under the split, the fourth in Apple’s history, shareholders received seven of the new shares for every old share they owned.
Cook has said the split would make Apple stock “more accessible to a larger number of investors.”
Meanwhile, Samsung Electronics Co, Apple’s biggest competitor, has seen its stock decline 8.6 percent this year.
Earnings at the world’s largest maker of mobile phones have fallen for three consecutive quarters, pinched between competition with Apple for customers of high-end smartphones and Chinese manufacturers for less expensive models.
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