“We believe the Street is underestimating continued gross margin expansion,” he wrote in his note to clients, which was titled: “A Hardware Company That Thinks Like a Software Company.”
Malik is upbeat about Apple’s AAPL ability to expand margins by continuing to drive consumers toward more expensive devices and configurations. Plus, Apple boasts “resilient market share,” with gains against Android devices, and it’s poised to lower its own costs thanks to a move to design its own custom chips.
“Moreover, growing higher-margin services sales mix should help expand the overall corporate gross margins,” Malik continued, as he set a $240 price target on Apple shares, which closed Thursday at $189.59.
