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ERROR: type should be string, got "https://www.barrons.com/articles/apple-stock-record-iphone-5g-airpods-developer-conference-51592843978\nApple Stock Is on Pace for a Record as Its Developer Conference Begins — and Analysts Can’t Contain Their Excitement\nEric J. Savitz\nUpdated June 22, 2020 1:17 pm ET / Original June 22, 2020 12:43 pm ET\nApple’s iPhone business “should accelerate as we enter a 5G upgrade cycle.”\nTomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images\nJust ahead of this year’s kickoff of the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference, Wall Street analysts weighed in on Monday with a flurry of bullish research notes, driving the stock further into record territory.\nCowen analyst Krish Sankar reiterated his Outperform rating on Apple (ticker: AAPL), lifting his target price to $400 from $335. He raised his outlook for iPhone sales, while also ratcheting up his target P/E multiple, based on enthusiasm for the anticipated 5G iPhone debut this fall. (There is no expectation that Apple will discuss the new phones at this week’s conference.) Sankar writes that he views Apple as “a defensive name with a stock-multiple-enhancing Services segment that continues to benefit from the work from home and distance learning environment,” as well as “a cash generating iPhone business that should accelerate as we enter a 5G upgrade cycle.”\nSankar goes on to make a case for a higher multiple for Apple shares. “We have always argued for a higher multiple for the Services business due to the ‘recurring revenue’ type nature of this segment that continues to grow off a loyal installed base as well as some new subs,” he writes. “The market is acknowledging this, but the debate on the right multiple to apply to the overall stock still continues.”\nEvercore ISI analyst Amit Daryanani repeats his Outperform rating, while lifting his target price to $375 from $365. His note focuses on the potential in Apple’s wearables business.\n“Wearables as a category remains underappreciated by investors given its potential to be an incremental driver beyond Services to enable Apple to keep working higher,” he writes. “Apple doesn’t get credit for the potential to launch new products that could accelerate growth and increase ecosystem stickiness—a dynamic likely to occur via hardware to drive [augmented reality/virtual reality] adoption.” He thinks there is a high probability that Apple will introduce AR/VR headsets or glasses, or both, over the next few years. Daryanani thinks wearables can generate $60 billion or more in annual sales over the next few years.\nMing-Chi Kuo, a closely followed analyst at Hong Kong-based TF International Securities, writes that he expects Apple to ship 120 million AirPods in 2021, up from an estimated 93.8 million this year. He expects AirPod sales to get a boost from an anticipated Apple policy decision to stop shipping iPhones with wired EarPods. He also predicts Apple will introduce AirPods 3 to replace AirPods 2 in the 2021 first half.\nDeutsche Bank’s Jeriel Ong addressed Friday’s news that Apple had decided to re-close 11 U.S. stores in states where Covid-19 cases are spiking, including Florida, Arizona, North Carolina and South Carolina. His view is that this is an ominous macro signal, but has little import to Apple shareholders. “Overall, we interpret this news negatively for the prospects of a smooth reopening of the U.S. economy,” he writes. “ For Apple specifically…we believe it will have little-to-no impact on the fundamentals as Apple’s 510 store retail presence is a minority of their overall sales pipeline.” Ong maintains his Buy rating on the shares.\nApple shares were up 2.1% to $357.18 Monday afternoon, putting them on track for another record close. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up. 0.4%.\nWrite to Eric J. Savitz at eric.savitz@barrons.com"