Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown:
“Apple is gearing up for what could be its most important iPhone launch in years. The headline act is expected to be its first foldable iPhone, marking the biggest shake-up to the product since the iPhone X. Reports suggest a book-style device with a price tag above $2,000, firmly aimed at the premium end of the market. The usual Pro upgrades are also expected, with some fairly hefty price hikes (potentially $200+ for the Pro model) as Apple looks to offset rising memory costs.
On the numbers, we’d expect early stock to sell out quickly for a foldable phone, providing a potential $10-20bn tailwind to Apple’s Q1 2027 print. This doesn’t need to become a mass-market hit straight away to make a difference. Its premium price should lift revenue, margins, and average selling prices, while a genuinely new form factor may tempt customers who have been holding on to older phones for longer. How demand and supply evolve after the initial hype has faded is the bigger question.
Expectations remain high, even after the recent pullback in the shares. It's easy to see why, given Apple has all the ingredients for a material and sustainable upgrade cycle. But a genuinely new form factor is the icing on the cake rather than the main event, and investors are still hungry for a killer agentic experience that users desperately want. Hardware can carry the story for a while, but delivering on the AI opportunity is the real prize.”
Notes to Editors
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