Stocks Open Higher After Indexes Hit Records; S&P 500, Nasdaq on Track for 3rd Straight Week of Gains

Citi Downgrades Intuit Stock to ‘Sell’

32 minutes ago

Citi is not a believer in Intuit’s stock.

Analysts at the bank downgraded the chipmaker’s shares to “sell” from “neutral,” because of “Intel’s valuation and our belief that the stock is pricing in success in its leading-edge foundry business, which we believe has minimal chance to succeed.”

The analysts added that “INTC stock is up roughly 50% since early August on the Nvidia deal and speculation that a foundry deal is next. We disagree given our belief that Intel’s foundry is years behind [Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSM)].”

Intel shares, which soared nearly 23% yesterday after Nvidia (NVDA) said it would invest $5 billion into its struggling rival, were down about 1% at the open.

Apple’s iPhone 17 Goes on Sale Globally; Strong Demand Reported for Pro Models

2 hr 15 min ago

Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone 17 lineup went on sale Friday, reportedly drawing long lines of customers in Europe and Asia amid strong demand for the new products—especially for the Pro models.

The tech giant introduced the lineup earlier this month and opened them up for pre-orders, with the new phones including a thinner model, the iPhone Air, as well the more expensive iPhone 17 Pro, Pro Max, and iPhone Air. New Apple Watch and AirPods models were also unveiled. The iPhone 17 Pro is selling for $1,099, up $100 from the iPhone 16, with storage of 256 gigabytes, or double the previous model’s, and a longer battery life.

The phones had met with mixed reaction from analysts, with some, like Morgan Stanley, calling the iPhone Air “a small positive surprise.” Others said they are waiting for AI-powered updates to the lineup that could give Apple’s stock, the sole decliner among the Magnificent 7 tech giants this year, a bigger catalyst for gains. 

The shares have been under pressure amid Wall Street concerns that the tech firm has been slow out of the gate in the AI race, with even the new devices lagging at a time when analysts increasingly are touting wearables like smart glasses as a key device to access the technology. Apple has also been increasingly losing ground in China, the world’s largest smartphone market, to domestic rivals like Huawei and Oppo.

According to CNBC, demand is especially strong for the Pro and Pro Max models, with lines in London “notably longer” than they were for the iPhone 16 and consumers in Beijing queuing up the night before to get their hands on the models following strong pre-order sales in China.

Read the full story here.

–Nisha Gopalan

US Stock Futures Little Changed After Indexes Hit Record Highs

2 hr 45 min ago

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were near flat.

S&P 500 futures rose less than 0.1%.

Nasdaq 100 futures also gained less than 0.1%.