Tech bull Dan Ives believes that 2026 is finally Apple ‘s year to emerge as a serious contender in the artificial intelligence race. The Wedbush analyst reiterated his outperform rating on the iPhone maker and lifted his 12-month price target to $350 from $320, which signals a gain of about 26% from Friday’s close. Ives justified his price hike by noting that Apple finally has an AI strategy. He pointed to Apple formally announcing a partnership with Google’s Gemini early next year in the AI space, which he expects to be a “gamechanger” for both companies going forward. AAPL YTD mountain AAPL YTD chart “2026 is going to finally be the year that Apple actually enters the AI Revolution,” he wrote. “The elephant in the room remains the invisible AI strategy, with the biggest consumer installed base in the world of 2.4 billion iOS devices and 1.5 billion iPhones, the time is now for Apple to accelerate its AI efforts. We believe the AI monetization piece could add $75 to $100 per share to the Apple story over the coming few years as it finally plays out after a head scratching AI strategy this year in Apple Park.” Ives also expects Tim Cook will remain Apple’s CEO through at least the end of 2027 to help guide the company through this AI technology transition. Additionally, the analyst applauded the iPhone 17’s strong sales trending into year-end, including in China. He added that Apple has continued to execute above Wall Street’s growth expectations and envisions a “healthy holiday season” ahead for the company. Shares of Apple have added 11% this year.
