Apple gets a big price target hike, and Wells Fargo plants a big dealmaking flag

CNBC Finance

5 min read

Apple gets a raise, and Wells Fargo wants to expand. Here are updates on two portfolio stocks in the news. Apple The news : Citi raised its price target on Apple to $330 from $315, implyingÂ roughly 19% upside from Tuesday's close. The firm's analysts, who maintain a buy rating on the shares, expect iPhone sales to rise, as many customers are due for upgrades after years with the same devices. They also cited a recent IDC report forecasting a record year for Apple's iPhone shipments, citing the "phenomenal success" of the iPhone 17 series. Analysts at IDC raised iPhone 2025 shipment growth forecasts to 6.1% year over year, up significantly from their previous forecast of 3.9%. Citi said that Apple has promising AI developments on the horizon, too, citing reports that the iPhone maker is nearing a deal to pay Alphabet 's Google for its AI technology to power the upcoming, personalized Siri. "We believe the partnership could enable Apple to deliver a more powerful Siri as promised while giving the company time to keep developing its own model," the analysts said. AAPL YTD mountain Apple (AAPL) year-to-date performance The Club take : Apple is trading just 4% off its record high on Tuesday, but it still has room to run. In fact, we raised Apple's price target to $300 from $240 after October earnings , driven in part by promising signs for the iPhone 17. Jim Cramer has been pounding the table on Apple's latest flagship device since its September launch, touting the iPhone 17 series as a substantial value given trade-in values and carrier subsidies. "We've been saying the iPhone 17 is unbelievable," Jim previously said. He added, "As long as Apple makes the best products, people will buy them." Wall Street analysts at JPMorgan and Bank of America have said that lead times, a key gauge of demand, for iPhone 17 models tracked better than for iPhone 16 models. All of this has contributed to the stock's gains over the past several months , which have propelled Apple into the $4 trillion market-cap club. However, we still need more clarity on Apple's AI plans, as its Apple Intelligence rollout has been staggered and delayed. Jim has said that Apple is uniquely positioned to win in AI. The company's massive installed base makes it a strong AI partner for those looking to expand services to a larger audience. The Club maintains its long-held "own, don't trade" thesis on Apple shares. Wells Fargo The news: Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf intends to transform the bank into a top-five player in Wall Street dealmaking. During an industry conference on Tuesday, Scharf outlined the firm's ambitions to expand its corporate and investment banking (CIB) division to better compete with larger, more established firms like Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan . Wells has a competitive edge, according to Scharf, because of its great relationships across its other lines of business, such as cash management. Scharf said it's easier to attract clients to the investment banking division when they've already worked with the firm. Additionally, Wells has poached top bankers from rivals like Barclays , Deutsche Bank , Piper Sandler, and others to bolster its investment banking efforts. "What we've found is that we're a very attractive place for bankers to want to come work because of everything that we have to offer," Scharf said, citing Wells Fargo's massive balance sheet. Although Wells Fargo has long been viewed as a Main Street lender, management has focused in recent years on expanding its investment banking business to diversify its bottom line further. By some measures, the bank is making progress. Wells Fargo is currently ranked No. 8 in global investment banking revenue share so far in 2025, according to research firm Dealogic , up from No. 9 this time last year. Wells co-advised Union Pacific on its $72 billion cash-and-stock deal for Norfolk Southern , one of the year's largest M & A transactions, and is helping to arrange a $59 billion bridge loan for Netflix 's planned acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery . WFC'L YTD mountain Wells Fargo (WFC) year-to-date performance The Club take : It's no surprise to us that Scharf wants to capture more business in Wall Street dealmaking. For years, Wells Fargo has been making moves to beef up the investment-banking franchise with a slew of senior-level hires . "I just don't think people understand that Scharf's been the best recruiter of bankers," Jim said during "Squawk on the Street" on Tuesday. That's because investment banking is an excellent line of business to expand into, as it further diversifies Wells' revenues and reduces the firm's reliance on interest-based income, which is sensitive to Federal Reserve monetary policy changes. Moving forward, Wells Fargo can be more aggressive in investing in the deal-making business now that regulators have removed its $1.95 trillion asset cap, which was put in place in 2018 after a fake customer accounts scandal. The removal allows the bank to grow its balance sheet again, rather than focusing all its efforts on remedying past regulatory mistakes that predate Scharf's tenure. "I do think this is the Wells Fargo that wants to compete in real life," Jim said. (Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust is long AAPL, WFC, GS. See here for a full list of the stocks.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED.

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Apple gets a big price target hike, and Wells Fargo plants a big dealmaking flag

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