There are still plenty of buying opportunities among tech stocks, according to Bank of America. The investment bank says stocks like Apple are table buying ahead of quarterly results this week. CNBC Pro conducted the Bank of America survey to find market-rated tech stocks with the most upside. They include: Microsoft, Apple, Micron Technology, Shopify and Sea Limited. Apple Bank of America recently raised its price target for the iPhone maker to $256 from $230. Analyst Wamsi Mohan said Apple is firing on all cylinders ahead of what it says is an “iPhone refresh(ed) cycle.” Recent research checks by the bank show that Apple’s iPhone user base is poised to upgrade to products containing AI features. Brand loyalty is paramount, according to the bank. “14% of US respondents said they plan to buy the Apple Vision Pro,” Mohan wrote. Apple is scheduled to report earnings next Thursday, August 1st. “We reiterate our Buy rating based on the expected multi-year iPhone cycle driven by GenAI, strong service growth and margin expansion,” he said. Shares are up 13.2% this year. Shopify Time to buy shares of the Canadian business website provider, according to Bank of America. Analyst Brad Sills recently upgraded Shopify to buy from neutral as a “more balanced growth and margin profile” prevails. The company’s transformation with a new chief financial officer is also underway, Sills said, as quarterly results loom large in early August. “Revenue growth and disciplined spending point to healthy margin expansion going forward,” he wrote. Sills sees Shopify with several competitive advantages that portend big share gains down the road. “Shopify looks well positioned to continue to capture e-commerce market share while achieving better scale and [free-cash flow] conversion,” he continued. Shares are down 23% in the US this year. Shares of Singapore-based internet technology company Sea Limited are up 61% this year but have more upside, Bank of America said. Analyst Sachin Salgaonkar urged clients to remain calm as trends show improvement in the company’s gaming divisions and Shopee is Sea’s Southeast Asian e-commerce platform. (Shopee), while its expansion into Brazil offers further long-term growth potential,” he wrote. The bank says losses are bottoming out, while also acknowledging that competition from Sea is real. However, the Wall Street firm reiterated its buy rating, urging Customers will hold shares for the long term going forward We were pleased to host Micron’s CFO Mark Murphy, CVP Satya Kumar and IR Samir Patodia for high-profile investor meetings in Boston and New York. Key message very bullish on: pricing, visibility, supply discipline and mix improvement to differentiated enterprise IT and storage products.” Microsoft “We believe MSFT is well positioned to generate solid double-digit growth over the next 3-5 years with continued adoption of its Azure cloud infrastructure platform, cloud-based Office 365 productivity suite, and more profitable Games revenue & Game Pass on Xbox.” Sea Limited “”In our view it is well positioned to lead the e-communications boom in SE Asia given its increasingly dominant online marketplace (Shopee), while its expansion into Brazil offers further long-term growth potential… We see stable competitive trends in the region and we expect interest rates to improve. Apple “Strong multi-year iPhone refresh cycle with aging installed base, PO at $256. … .We reiterate our Buy rating based on an expected multi-year iPhone cycle driven by GenAI, strong service growth and margin expansion. 14 % of US respondents said they plan to buy Apple Vision Pro.” Shopify “Revenue growth and disciplined spending point to healthy margin expansion going forward. … Shopify looks well-positioned to continue capturing e-commerce market share while achieving better scale and FCF conversion. … More balanced growth and margin profile.”
