Apple set to unveil first foldable iPhone at Ternus’ debut event

Bank of America ↗ 0.32% analyst Wamsi Mohan reiterated a Buy rating and $380 price objective on Apple ↗ 0.93% in a note published September 8, one day before new CEO John Ternus hosts his first product launch event at Apple Park.thestreet

The note models fiscal 2026 revenue of $477 billion, up about 15% from the prior year, and earnings of $8.85 a share, up roughly 19%. For fiscal 2027, Mohan projects earnings of $9.92 a share, about 3% above the Bloomberg consensus of $9.59 cited in the note. Against the September 8 close of $316.22, the $380 target implies roughly 20% upside and sits well above the $324.53 average across 44 analysts tracked by StockAnalysis.com.thestreet

What the Analyst Expects on Stage

Mohan anticipates three phones at the September 9 event: the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and Apple's first foldable device, likely branded Ultra or Fold. He models price increases of $150 to $200 across the Pro line and points to media reports placing the foldable at $2,099, which would make it the most expensive iPhone ever sold. The base iPhone 18, the 18 Air, and the 18e have reportedly slipped to spring 2027, leaving only premium models on shelves through the holiday quarter.thestreet

Apple's event is set for 10 a.m. Pacific Time on Wednesday, the first keynote under Ternus, who succeeded Tim Cook as CEO on September 1. The New York Times reported that the foldable device opens and closes like a book with a bendable display.nytimes+2

Not Everyone Shares the View

The bullish call is far from unanimous. KeyBanc Capital Markets holds an Underweight rating and a $250 target, modeling iPhone 18 builds near 80 million units across the September and December quarters, down from about 91 million a year earlier. MoffettNathanson lifted its target to $304 from $270 but stayed at Neutral.thestreet

Bank of America's September-quarter earnings estimate of $1.97 a share actually sits a penny below the $1.98 consensus, a detail that underscores how much of the $380 thesis rests on fiscal 2027 and 2028 growth rather than the launch quarter itself. If iPhone 18 shipments begin September 19, Apple would get eight selling days in the quarter — one fewer than the iPhone 17 received a year ago.thestreet

As Reuters has framed it, the stakes for Ternus are as much an artificial intelligence test as a hardware one. Wednesday's event will produce a price list; the December quarter, reported in late January, will produce the numbers that determine whether $380 was the right call.thestreet