Tag Archives: aapl

Apple Faces ‘Existential Threat’ From Messenger Bots

Apple ‘s ( AAPL ) strength in mobile devices is due largely to its app store platform, but the company faces an “existential threat” from software bots that could replace apps, UBS analyst Steven Milunovich said Wednesday. Apple’s App Store leads the $50 billion app economy and has been critical to the company’s success, Milunovich said in a research report. However, software bots that automate tasks could take on many of the roles that apps now provide, he said. Bots mostly reside in messaging apps, providing apps within apps, Milunovich said. “In China, WeChat provides high functionality, such as paying bills, hailing a cab and checking into flights through apps within apps,” he said. “ Facebook ( FB ) just announced the Messenger Bot Store, a bot platform that allows businesses to interact with consumers.” At Facebook’s annual developer conference in San Francisco on Tuesday, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg showed how third parties can build chat bots into its Messenger service. He demonstrated a chat bot from 1-800-Flowers.com ( FLWS ) that could carry on a conversation with a customer who wanted to order flowers. Last month, Microsoft ( MSFT ) CEO Satya Nadella called chat bots the next big thing after apps and said that his company is aggressively investing in the technology. Chat bots offer a “more natural (way) for people to get things done” instead of having a separate app for each task. Chat bots use artificial intelligence to interact with people and complete tasks. Milunovich maintained his buy rating on Apple with a 12-month price target of 120. Apple stock was up 1.5% in late-afternoon trading in the stock market today , near 112.

Apple, Amazon Lead 5 Tech Stocks Making Notable Moves

Loading the player… Apple ( AAPL ), Amazon ( AMZN ), Tesla ( TSLA ), Fitbit ( FIT ) and Yahoo ( YHOO ) are five big-name tech stocks making notable moves in the stock market today as the major indexes rally for a second session. The Nasdaq is trading at its highest level this year, and the S&P 500 is trading higher than the levels it saw in late December. Apple Retakes 200-Day Line Apple hit resistance at its 200-day moving average for the past week and a half, but looks like it may be able to close above that level today with a 1.5% gain in above-average turnover. Apple hasn’t traded above the 200-day since November, and that was only briefly. The stock is now 16% below its late-April peak. The consumer tech giant is set to report quarterly results in a few weeks. Analysts have been expecting lower iPhone demand this year, but some say there may be a pickup once the iPhone 7 is launched. Amazon Breaks Out Amazon is breaking out of a cup-with-handle base with a 603.34 buy point, rising 1.6%. Volume is tracking above average. The stock tried to edge into buy range the last two sessions but closed below the pivot. Shares are now trading 12% below their high reached in late December. Citi on Tuesday said Amazon is one Internet stock that has the greatest opportunity to produce better-than-expected Q1 results, which the e-commerce giant will report later this month. Tesla To End Losing Streak? Tesla is looking to end its four-session losing streak as it climbs back above the 250 price level with a 2.4% rise. But volume is not strong. The electric car maker is trading 11% below its July high. On Tuesday, Tesla introduced a few upgrades to its Model S, and Global Equities Research says this will improve the car’s production rate by 10%. That could be a good sign as Tesla is ramping up production of its Model X and prepping production for its Model 3. Fitbit Surges On Bullish Report Fitbit is jumping 12.7% in big volume, hitting a more than two-month high. The stock is trading 67% below its all-time high. Citi issued a bullish report on the stock, saying that Blaze and Alta sales could fuel upside to Q1 results and a positive Q2 outlook. The maker of fitness trackers said late last month that it sold 1 million units of each of the two new models in their first month of availability. Fitbit also reports earnings later this month. Will Yahoo Hit 8-Month High? Yahoo may be able to close at an eight-month high, climbing 1.2%, but volume is tracking lighter than average. Shares are 19% below their 52-week peak. Suntrust Robinson Humphrey raised its price target on Yahoo, which is looking to be acquired.

Jury Out On Whether Ad Blocking A Help Or A Hurt To Programmatic

The jury’s still out on whether ad blocking will help or hurt the expansion of programmatic advertising, a survey of U.S. marketers has found. Wall Street has expressed off-and-on concern that Apple ‘s ( AAPL ) decision to let users install apps that prevent ads from appearing in its Safari mobile browser could cut into the business of ad-tech companies, but an industrywide decline has not materialized. A March survey by investment bank RBC Capital Markets and Advertising Age found that 58% of respondents believe ad-blocking technology will have a “somewhat negative” effect on the programmatic advertising ecosystem. Another 20% of respondents said ad blocking will have a “significantly negative” effect on the programmatic advertising space, said the survey, which was reported by research group eMarketer on Wednesday. Still, some marketers believe ad blocking could be good for programmatic, with 6% of the marketers surveyed saying ad blocking would have either a “significantly positive” or “somewhat positive” effect on automated ad buying. Even so, some senior ad buyers in the U.S. are bracing for trouble as programmatic advertising expands. The RBC survey found that 57% of ad buyers listed multidevice measurement as a problem for programmatic, followed by fraud (47%), ad blocking on smartphones (35%) and privacy issues (18%). Gaming, social networking and tech-related websites are said to be most affected by ad-blocking software. Gaining Steam Seven months after Apple made ad blocking possible on iOS mobile phones , eMarketer says that the trend is gaining steam. That could mean companies including Alphabet ( GOOGL ) search unit Google, French ad firm Criteo ( CRTO ) and others that rely on advertising to make money aren’t totally in the clear, though they’ve said that ad blocking isn’t affecting their business. Ad sales conducted by machines rather than ad salespeople — so-called programmatic ads — take less time to execute and cost advertisers less, which accounts for their popularity with advertisers, though it tends to lower revenue for online-ad platforms. Ad blockers serve to reduce the amount of bandwidth that a user needs by cutting down the amount of content — seen and unseen — that a page has to load. They can also help with privacy by blocking programs that track users’ browsing habits — good for users, bad for advertisers who want to show their ads to people who are the most likely to buy their products. Mobile is driving programmatic advertising growth, with mobile accounting for more than two-thirds of all programmatic digital display-ad spending this year, says eMarketer in a report on Tuesday. Facebook ( FB ), Google-owned YouTube, LinkedIn ( LNKD ) and others are helping to drive the trend. Declining Growth Rate U.S. programmatic digital display-ad spending is projected to rise to $27.4 billion in 2017, up 24%, eMarketer said last week. But that growth rate is declining from a projected 39% this year and 53% in 2015, the research group said. Mobile programmatic spending will reach $15.45 billion in the U.S. in 2016, representing 69% of all programmatic digital display-ad spending, according to eMarketer. That’s up from 60% in 2015 and 46% in 2014. Apple stock climbed 1% in midday trading in the stock market today , near 112, and is up more than 20% since touching an eight-month low early this year. Alphabet stock rose by a fraction, near 770 and approaching a cup-with-handle breakout buy point at 777.41.