What happened
Apple (AAPL +1.08%) stock hit the mark Wednesday afternoon, scoring a 2.5% gain as of 2:45 p.m. ET after the tech giant announced it will hold a "Peek Performance" product launch event on March 8 -- less than a week away.
Investors seem so excited about the news, that they're looking right past Apple's other announcement, yesterday, that it will halt product sales in Russia, and remove Russian propaganda/news sites RT News and Sputnik from its outside-Russia Apple Stores, sacrificing both hardware and services revenue in the process.
Image source: Getty Images.
So what
So what is this big news today, exactly, that's eclipsing yesterday's big news?
As CNBC reports, Apple just sent out a batch of invitations asking media to tune into its Peek Performance launch event online -- the company's first such event since October 2021. While the company apparently didn't confirm many details, CNBC says that Apple fans are anticipating the company will announce "a new low-cost iPhone with 5G support and a fingerprint reader" and perhaps a new "midrange iPad" as well.
There's also the potential that Apple might release an anticipated new version of iPhone software, iOS 15.4, which could enable the device to recognize a face wearing a Covid mask (for facial recognition) and transform every iPhone into a payment device able to accept payment via contactless (tap-and-go) credit cards.
Now what
Which of these developments -- if any of them actually are announced this weekend -- would be most important to Apple stock?
Obviously, a new, cheaper, entry-level iPhone would be a plus for Apple. The bigger the "installed base" of iPhones out there, the more chances to capture long-term denizens of the Apple ecosystem. The software update enabling acceptance of contactless payments would also be a big plus, potentially boosting Apple's ability to take high-margin percentages of service revenues, and at the same time making it easier for small businesses to thrive in the new gig economy where everyone has the potential to become her or his own business.
That's the kind of business boost that could convince a smartphone user to switch from Android to Apple in an instant.
