Memory-makers have been soaring in the past few months due to the chip shortage. Manufacturers are not able to meet the demand for NAND and DRAM, and AI companies are turning desperate. They’re securing whatever supply they can, and memory companies are closing down their consumer arm to meet the enterprise demand.
Amid all this disarray, however, lies Apple (AAPL) stock. Investors have chosen to buy red-hot memory stocks instead of choosing to buy a “steady Eddie” like AAPL stock, but that may exactly be why it’s worth buying right now. Of course, that’s if you believe this one Wall Street expert.
Evercore ISI analysts, led by Amit Daryanani, are looking the other way. The firm acknowledges that the memory crunch squeezes hardware original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), but it points out that Apple stands apart from that narrative. Evercore’s investor conversations over the past week reveal that the market is broadly optimistic on memory suppliers but cautious on OEMs broadly, and yet Apple is seeing a quiet reduction in bearish sentiment.
Evercore now holds an “Outperform” rating and a $330 price target on shares, and it has kept Apple as one of its top picks for all of calendar year 2026. What Evercore likes is the combination of a derisked capital expenditure story, a building iPhone 17 cycle, and anticipated growth stretching into 2027. Evercore also expects Apple Intelligence features to roll out in phases this year, with upgraded Siri functionality arriving mid-year and a more complete overhaul this fall.
Apple’s fundamentals give that thesis some real footing. The company just posted fiscal first-quarter 2026 revenue of $143.8 billion and EPS of $2.84, both ahead of Street estimates. iPhone revenue grew 23% year-over-year (YOY) and, notably, memory headwinds barely dented gross margins in the quarter. Management guided for March quarter revenue growth of 13% to 16% YOY, well above the Street’s projection of roughly 10%.
Daryanani is not the only analyst who wants you to buy Apple, either. AAPL stock is a consensus “Moderate Buy” if you average all the ratings.
