Tech giant Apple (AAPL) – Get Apple Inc. Report said this past week that it will halt all sales of its product in Russia as the country’s invasion of Ukraine continues.
The American company site shows delivery dates as “currently unavailable” on its Russian site and Apple said it had stopped all exports into Russia.
On Friday, Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov publicly asked Apple to stop selling its products and services in Russia. “I’ve contacted @tim_cook, Apple’s CEO, to block the Apple Store for citizens of the Russian Federation, and to support the package of US government sanctions! If you agree to have the president-killer, then you will have to be satisfied with the only available site Russia 24,” Fedorov posted on his Twitter account. He also posted a letter he wrote to Cook.
Four days later, the company said in a statement that it had also removed Sputnik News and RT News from its App Store because of their connection as state-run media to the Putin administration.
The company said that Apple Pay and other services have been limited and that it has “disabled both traffic and live incidents in Apple Maps in Ukraine” in order to keep people in the area safe.
The company joins Nike (NKE) – Get NIKE, Inc. Class B Report, Warner Bros., and Disney (DIS) – Get Walt Disney Company Report in limiting the business it does in Russia beyond what official sanctions have required. Facebook (MVRS) – Get Meta Report, Google (GOOGL) – Get Alphabet Inc. Class A Report, and Youtube have also already taken anti-Russian measures.
Apple Makes a Big Announcement
It’s just an image and a short tagline but when it comes from Apple, that’s all it takes. The computer giant sent out an invitation to “Peek Performance,” its first special event of the year, which is scheduled to take place on March 8 at 10 a.m. Pacific.
The invitation comes with a multicolored image of the Apple logo in a receding style. Clicking on the “Learn More” button brings viewers to a review of several past Apple events and what the tech company announced at each one.
Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, tweeted a brief video clip of the image complete with a soundtrack and a glowing image of its famous logo with the message “Wonder Ahead.”
“Peek performance,” he wrote. “March 8th. See you there.”
There are no details, but there is plenty of speculation about what the company might unleash upon the world.
What to Expect From Apple’s First Big Event of The Year
A new entry-level iPhone? A new iPad? New services? Speculation is rife on the eve of Apple’s first event of the year. Analysts and tech enthusiasts have been wondering what Apple will come up with and they have a few theories.
The highlight of the virtual event will be the iPhone SE starting likely at $399 price points with a new A15 Bionic chip and 5G capability, said Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives and John Katsingris.
Ives and Katsingris said that they estimate the new iPhone SE “can translate into 30 million+ incremental units over the next year as globally there is pent up demand for this next SE based on recent supply chain checks.”
“We also expect a new iPad Air 5 to be announced with the proprietary A15 chip and expect at least one new Mac release which likely will be a refreshed 13-inch MacBook Pro with an updated M2 chip (although a handful of Mac upgrades are likely coming in the next 3-5 months),” the analysts said.
The website MacRumors said a new iPad air is expected with key new features rumored to include an A15 chip, an upgraded 12-megapixel Ultra Wide front camera with Center Stage support, 5G for cellular models, and Quad-LED True Tone flash.
The two analysts noted that Apple is unveiling more new products to hit the shelves at a time when technology and automotive companies around the world are cutting production and new product launches.
This speaks to the “nearly Teflon-like” ability of CEO Tim Cook & Co. “to navigate this unprecedented supply chain shortage globally,” they said.
CFRA Research analyst Angelo Zino said Apple could attract more price-sensitive consumers if the price of the iPhone SE remains the same for the new version, according to Reuters.
TheStreet Quant Ratings rates Apple as a Buy with a rating score of A.
Here’s a breakdown list of more technology and FAANG/MAMAA stocks to watch right now based on their performance over the past week:
Faced with the refusal of the tech giants to submit to their wishes, Russia, whose invasion of Ukraine is unanimously criticized throughout the world, has decided to use the stick. The government now blocks access to Facebook in the country for violating local rules. In a statement in Russian, the government agency in charge of media and communications supervision, Roskomnadzor, lists 26 cases of violations of local laws by Facebook.
In particular, the agency accuses the company founded by Mark Zuckerberg, renamed Meta Platforms in October, of discriminating against Russian state media to which Facebook has restricted access to its platforms since the first Russian shootings in Ukraine. The move comes after the Russian parliament passed a law on Friday banning the dissemination of “false information” against the Russian military, according to reports.
TheStreet Quant Ratings rates Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook) as a Buy with a rating score of B+.
Netflix
Streaming giant Netflix (NFLX) – Get Netflix, Inc. Report which has been quietly beefing up its gaming operations all of last year, as diversification becomes a big focus for the company, has taken its plans up a notch to be able to consistently launch new games globally to all of its members. Netflix also acknowledged games is a pretty great business to be in. “Films that you love and series that you define yourself by and games that thrill you, that’s a pretty great business. We’re thrilled to be in it,” Netlfix Co-Chief Executive Ted Sarandos said in the company’s latest earnings call.
Netflix also hired former Electronic Arts (EA) – Get Electronic Arts Inc. Report and Facebook executive Greg Peters in July to lead its gaming division. Peters is the chief operating officer and chief product officer at Netflix. Netflix had even hinted at a potential video game based on its top show “Squid Game” in October last year after reporting stellar third-quarter earnings, as it seeks alternate revenue streams to add to its subscription service in a bid to compete with rival Disney.
TheStreet Quant Ratings rates Netflix as a Hold with a rating score of C.
Microsoft
American tech giant Microsoft (MSFT) – Get Microsoft Corporation Report has made a major push into artificial intelligence this week, closing its deal to acquire AI pioneer Nuance Communications Inc. The buyout will cost Microsoft $19.7 billion in an all-cash deal, and the company will take all of Nuance’s net debt as part of the terms. So why is the Seattle-based behemoth splashing out for Nuance in a volatile market and into an already-crowded sector? The short answer is because Nuance’s technology, which includes electronic health records, virtual assistance, and a host of other health care simplifying tools are projected to bring Microsoft’s share of the total addressable market to $500 billion.
Microsoft said this week that it has teamed up with Chargebacks911, a post-transaction fraud platform, to help customers identify and remedy fishy or false transactions. Microsoft said in a statement that the partnership will be created with the end-user in mind, a welcome development for even the most diehard Microsoft fans. As the pandemic has lingered and people have been stuck working and doing, well, everything, remotely, online scams and hacks have increased.
TheStreet Quant Ratings rates Microsoft as a Buy with a rating score of B+.
Amazon
Who thought Amazon (AMZN) – Get Amazon.com, Inc. Report would help out its competitors? Retailers have battled Amazon’s online retail dominance for years and many have despised its plans to encroach into brick-and-mortar sales. While Amazon’s reign as king of e-commerce might continue for years to come, the company may have just learned how difficult it is to succeed at brick-and-mortar retail.
The giant e-commerce retailer has decided to close some of its retail concepts, which might benefit its competitors such as Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, Staples, and Office Depot. The Seattle online retail behemoth said it will shut down brick-and-mortar operations at its 68 Amazon Books, 4-Star, and Pop Up stores in the U.S. and U.K., according to a Reuters report.
TheStreet Quant Ratings rates Amazon as a Buy with a rating score of B-.
Nvidia
America’s largest chipmaker Nvidia (NVDA) – Get NVIDIA Corporation Report is continuing to deal with a lingering cyberattack that “totally compromised” its internal systems, as hackers began leaking employee passwords online. The Lapsus$ ransomware group claimed responsibility for the breach this past week and has since been increasing its demands via messenger portal Telegram.
It has taken particular aim at Nvidia’s Lite Hash Rate, which crypto evangelists abhor for curbing the amount of cryptocurrency Ethereum that can be mined on the company’s RTX 30 series graphics cards. This source code is Nvidia’s crown-jewel. The cyberattack reportedly accessed info from 71,000 Nvidia employees, according to Have I Been Pwned, a website that tracks data breaches.
TheStreet Quant Ratings rates Nvidia as a Buy with a rating score of B.
Corporate America’s carefully drafted, triumphant return-to-the-office plans have derailed numerous times over the past 6 months. Covid variants — delta and then later omicron — both played spoilsport and kept workers scattered and some burnt out with coronavirus fatigue. But Silicon Valley is powering through for its return to normalcy, following in the footsteps of its Wall Street counterparts like Goldman Sachs (GS) – Get Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. Report, Citigroup (C) – Get Citigroup Inc. Report, and JPMorgan & Chase (JPM) – Get JPMorgan Chase & Co. Report.
Ironically, these are the same companies that will become creators of an immersive or embodied internet or the metaverse but will potentially achieve all their artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and machine learning ambitions while physically sitting next to each other. Tech giant Google on Wednesday reportedly told staffers in its U.S. offices, including its Mountain View California-based headquarters, to return to the office next month, starting April 4.
TheStreet Quant Ratings rates Alphabet as a Buy with a rating score of A.
Disney
Media and entertainment giant Disney is not taking any chances when it comes to meeting its goal of reaching over 230 million total paid subscribers for its streaming service Disney+ by the end of the fiscal year 2024. The company on March 4 said it will expand its Disney + offerings for users by introducing a cheaper ad-supported subscription in addition to its existing $7.99 monthly plan that is ad-free.
The move comes at a time when operating losses at Disney+ rose for the latest quarter as costs related to higher programming, technology, and marketing outstripped growth in subscription revenue. While the company did not disclose pricing details immediately it said the new plan will first be made available to customers in the U.S. beginning in late 2022.
TheStreet Quant Ratings rates Alphabet as a Hold with a rating score of C.
