‘U.S.-Made iPhones Are a Fairy Tale,’ Says Wedbush about Apple Stock

President Trump recently warned that Apple (AAPL) could face a 25% tariff on iPhones not made in the U.S., which is adding more pressure on investors, according to Wedbush Securities. In fact, the firm called it a “frustrating situation,” especially since Apple has already committed to investing $500 billion in the U.S. on projects that are mostly focused on AI. Nevertheless, despite Trump’s threats, Wedbush analysts said that it is extremely unlikely that Apple will move iPhone production to the U.S. anytime soon due to high costs and the complex global supply chain needed to make iPhones.

Indeed, the analysts explained that building iPhones entirely in the U.S. would raise the price of each phone to about $3,500 and take five to ten years to set up, therefore making the idea unrealistic. They even went as far as to describe it as a “fairy tale” because of how expensive and difficult it would be to change Apple’s supply chain.

As a result of this added uncertainty, Wedbush now believes that Apple CEO Tim Cook will likely become more involved in political discussions in order to manage the situation. In fact, as the company prepares for its iPhone 17 launch this fall, Cook may need to negotiate behind the scenes to avoid or reduce tariffs and keep Apple’s global operations running smoothly. Unsurprisingly, investors aren’t too thrilled about today’s news, as Apple shares are down at the time of writing.

Is Apple a Buy or Sell Right Now?

Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on AAPL stock based on 17 Buys, eight Holds, and four Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. Furthermore, the average AAPL price target of $228.65 per share implies 16.4% upside potential.

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