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Leading analyst Craig Moffett suggests any plans to move U.S. iPhone assembly to India is unrealistic. Moffett, ranked as a top analyst multiple times by Institutional Investor, sent a memo to clients on Friday after the Financial Times reported Apple was aiming to shift production toward India from China by the end of next year. He’s questioning how a move could bring down costs tied to tariffs because the iPhone components would still be made in China. “You have a tremendous menu of problems created by tariffs, and moving to India doesn’t solve all the problems. Now granted, it helps to some degree,” the MoffettNathanson partner and senior managing director told CNBC’s “Fast Money” on Friday. “I would question how that’s going to work.” Moffett contends it’s not so easy to diversify to India — telling clients Apple’s supply chain would still be anchored in China and would likely face resistance. “The bottom line is a global trade war is a two-front battle, impacting costs and sales. Moving assembly to India might (and we emphasize might) help with the former. The latter may ultimately be the bigger issue,” he wrote to clients. Moffett cut his Apple price target on Monday to $141 from $184 a share. It implies a 33% drop from Friday’s close. The price target is also the Street low, according to FactSet. “I don’t think of myself as the biggest Apple bear,” he said. “I think quite highly of Apple. My concern about Apple has been the valuation more than the company.” Moffett has had a “sell” rating on Apple since Jan. 7. Since then, the company’s shares are down about 14%. “None of this is because Apple is a bad company. They still have a great balance sheet [and] a great consumer franchise,” he said. “It’s…

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Filed under: News - @ April 26, 2025 3:17 pm