What you need to know
- Apple shares closed at a new all-time high on Monday.
- Shares climbed sharply to begin the week.
- It comes following reports of increased payments from Google regarding the default search engine on iOS.
Apple's share price ended Monday at a new all-time high of $153.12.
AAPL climbed sharply to begin the week, on the back of reports that Apple might benefit to the tune of some $15B in payments from Google to be the default search engine on its iOS platform. The company is preparing to announce a slew of new products including the iPhone 13, which looks set to replace the iPhone 12 as the company's best iPhone to date.
At the end of last week, a new report from analysts estimates that Apple could be about to receive another massive payout from Google as the search giant seeks to maintain its spot as the default search engine on iOS. Whilst you can change your search provider on devices like the iPhone and iPad, Google reportedly pays Apple billions of dollars to be the number one spot and the default option, from Friday:
In a note from Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconaghi seen by Ped 30, Google's payments to remain the default search engine on the iPhone may have topped $10 billion in FY 2020. According to the analyst, payments from Google to Apple for this exclusivity may reach upwards of $15 billion in FY 2021... "We now forecast that Google's payments to Apple might be nearly $15B in FY 21, contribute an amazing ~850 bps to Services growth YoY, and amount to ~9% of company gross profits."
The deal between Apple and Google has been the subject of close antitrust scrutiny, and there's always the prospect regulators might intervene to put an end to the reservation. Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconaghi has also warned Google might simply decide the deal is too expensive. In its lawsuit against Google, Epic Games recently said that because of the "considerable profits" Google reaps through iOS and the deal, the company has no incentive to try and make people leave iOS and switch to Android.
For the time being at least, the markets seem optimistic about the continued prospect of the deal and Apple's overall fortunes. The company is also likely to announce a new iPad mini, mini-LED MacBook Pro models, and the next iteration of Apple silicon in the coming months.
