Goldman Sachs maintains a buy rating on Apple, focusing on AI integration and innovations at WWDC 2025

According to Zhitong Finance APP, on Wednesday, Goldman Sachs reiterated its "Buy" rating on Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) stock with a target price of $253, emphasizing the tech giant's progress in the integration of artificial intelligence (AI). Investment bank analysts pointed out that Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), scheduled for June 9-13, 2025, will showcase significant updates to the iOS system and enhancements in AI capabilities. Meanwhile, according to InvestingPro data, Apple's potential AI partner, Google's parent company Alphabet (GOOGL.US), has a market capitalization of $2.06 trillion, maintaining an industry-leading position with an overall financial health score of "GREAT." Goldman Sachs predicts that the WWDC 2025 keynote will reveal Apple's ongoing plans to integrate AI into its ecosystem, focusing on opening AI models to developers to support application creation—this strategy continues from last year's launch of Writing Tools, Image Playground, and Genmoji features. Additionally, following Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai's mention of a potential partnership with Apple by mid-2025, the possibility of iPhones equipped with Gemini AI is highly anticipated. Alphabet demonstrates solid fundamentals supporting this strategic collaboration with a 13% revenue growth and a robust price-to-earnings ratio of 18.85. The report notes that for investors to fully recognize "Apple Intelligence" as a core growth engine, Apple needs to further demonstrate breakthroughs in AI technology, including enhanced Siri, On-Screen Awareness, and Personal Context features planned for launch by the end of 2025 or in 2026. This conference will also bring design updates aimed at unifying the visual interface of Apple devices, including rounded application icons and semi-transparent display effects. Other highly anticipated releases include user-friendly features such as public WiFi access synchronization, AI-driven battery optimization technology, and deep integration of Gemini. Despite market concerns about the rollout progress of Apple Intelligence, Goldman Sachs remains optimistic. The firm believes that the incremental improvements in user experience brought by iOS 19, the implementation of AI-enhanced Siri, and the opening of large language models (LLMs) to developers will continue to strengthen user loyalty and help Apple fend off competition in the consumer AI space. Recently, Alphabet showcased significant breakthroughs in AI at its annual Google I/O conference, with its Google Search AI Mode now available to users across the United States, marking a major advancement in search functionality. Institutions such as Stifel, Citigroup, JP Morgan, and KeyBanc have maintained positive ratings on Alphabet, with target prices ranging from $175 to $200, highlighting market confidence in its AI strategy Citigroup specifically pointed out that Alphabet's Gemini application has reached 400 million monthly active users, with the AI Overviews feature driving an increase in search query volume; Wells Fargo emphasized the competitive advantages brought by the deep integration of AI with core search functions and personalized data; KeyBanc praised its infrastructure and traffic distribution capabilities, believing that AI products will open up new monetization paths. Both JP Morgan and KeyBanc reiterated their "Overweight" ratings, noting that rapid product innovation and strategic positioning in the AI field are its core growth drivers. The above dynamics confirm Alphabet's determination and strength in leading innovation in the wave of AI technology transformation